Favour
by HeathenVampires
Summary: The Count is trying to marry Ingrid off again, so as thanks to Ingrid for saving him from Elisabetta Vlad invokes a loophole to claim Ingrid as his betrothed, buying them both time to find someone suitable. 'Fake Engagement' prompt!
1. Plans

**Not my characters.**

 **Many thanks for the Vlad/Ingrid prompt, for some reason a fake engagement story hadn't occured to me before but I like it!**

 **Set post season four, ignores season five.**

 **On we go!**

-YD-

After Malik and Erin had left, and Elisabetta was dealt with and their father safe (pushing that poison from his system was a bitch), Vlad and Ingrid were sat by the fire listening to their father complain. "I wish you would let me reverse the mindwipe on Miss McCauley, you two should be together." "She can't handle life with a vampire, and I don't want to bite her!" Ingrid spent all of a minute being a little softer with him when she asked if Vlad missed Erin, but then the Count was complaining again and she was off. "I have to find that girl a husband, you come of age in a few short months and I want her out of here when it's time for you to be Grand High Vampire!" "Dad, you can't just marry her off because you want to, it's unfair." "I am the Prince of darkness, I don't do fair." Sighing, Vlad screwed up the newspaper with Malik and Erin's faces on and tossed it into the fire. Seems recovering from near death had stopped their father remembering he had admitted that he loved his daughter.

Landing in the library, Vlad felt an acute ache of guilt thinking of Bertrand. Pulling down the books he was looking for, he looked up to see Ingrid holding out a goblet of blood. "Pinot Norwegian, dad won't miss it. Hates the stuff, buys it because it is supposed to be impressive." Taking the goblet but not drinking it yet, Vlad looked up at her. "Ok, what do you want now?" "This time? Nothing. Just thought you could do with a pick me up after the poisoning." Not totally sure but indeed thirsty, Vlad sipped the glass. "Thanks." Ingrid eyed the books he was reading. "Blood binding? Something you want to tell me little brother?" "Nothing yet, depends what I find." Ingrid wandered off again, leaving him with blood and books for a few hours. An old tome gave him the answer he was looking for, so he picked up that book, put the others back and leapt up to his room for the day. Stripping off the jacket he had on, Vlad stretched out in his coffin and clicked the lid closed, desperate for rest.

Checking off the three month marker until his eighteenth birthday the next night, Vlad sighed to himself again. He didn't want to lead the Vampire world, but if he didn't keep his status then everything he had worked for, sacrificed for, it would be for nothing. "So, what were you reading up on binding for?" "Told you, depends what I find out and I haven't found it yet." He was lying, but Ingrid didn't need to know that. "Besides, don't you have a splash to make at the VHC again, now Lanzley is dead? Still a bit ticked you tricked me into that." Ingrid simply smirked, shrugging. "He would have dusted you then and there. And yes, I'm on my way to the VHC now. Just thought I would irritate you on my way." "Bye then."

And then Ingrid was gone, leaving Vlad to plan and avoid his father. The second part didn't go so well, his father summoning him to the dining room to complain about Ingrid, the cease fire, mad ex girlfriends and Ingrid again. Answering with "yes dad" and "ok" whenever he paused, Vlad grew progressively more bored and eventually excused himself for a drink. Ingrid returned in an irritated mood, someone at the VHC had probably told her girls couldn't do this or do that. Resuming his planning, Vlad was confident he had enough to challenge his father. The hardest step would be convincing Ingrid, but he figured she would come around when he explained. Now, when she was breaking something no doubt valuable, was probably not the time. Crossing off another day closer to his birthday when he got up the next night, he was just leaving the blood cellar when he heard the Count and Ingrid arguing. Flitting upstairs to grab his book just in case, Vlad followed the sound of angry shouting to the throne room.

"I am not marrying some dusty old coffin lodger you picked. Eat garlic!" "I am head of this clan, you will do as I say girl! Be grateful someone wants to marry you!" Predicting the argument topic correctly, Vlad stepped into the room. "Dad, could you give me a minute with Ingrid?" "What on earth for?" "That's my business. Go. I won't ask nicely again." Already riled, his father growled but shot out of the room. "What was that about?" Trying to work out how to word this so Ingrid wouldn't get the wrong idea, Vlad held up the book. "As head of the clan, he can push you to marry. The only person who can override that is me as heir, but I have to have an alternate option in place." "I'm not getting married!" Sitting down and bidding Ingrid to sit opposite him, Vlad thumbed through the pages. "This is not some kind of weird attempt on you, but I do have an option that will buy you time." Ingrid gestured for him to continue. "I can declare you as my betrothed. From then you can't get betrothed to anyone else, and we don't have to bind for five years." "You must be joking. That's not even legal, let alone considerable."

Pushing the book over, Vlad pointed out the passage. "Our parents were never married. And as I'm already legally the heir, you are basically just another Dracula. Meaning, thanks to the loophole there, I can claim you as a way to keep the bloodline Dracula." Ingrid's eyes read the words, but didn't seem to take them in. "Why would you even look for this? You might be the chosen one, but there are limits on who that makes you appealing to. And it's gross." "I'm not suggesting we get married for garlics sake, I'm offering you time to find someone you want to marry. If you haven't by the time the deadline is nearing, I'll work on changing the laws that let dad force you. I'll be Grand High Vampire by then remember." Ingrid was still wary, clearly suspicious Vlad had gone off the deep end on the rebound from Erin and was trying to trick Ingrid into something. "What do you get out of this?"

"Helping my sister. You saved my life from Elisabetta, I owe you big. Its not entirely selfless though. It means nobody can try to push another Adze on me, and I can work my way through leading the Vampire world without swarms of marriage offers. And of course, someone to accompany me to the VHC functions who won't try to stake me when my back is turned. We have to be seen together, but as vampires aren't big on public affection we won't have to touch each other or anything. Its your choice, but I thought I'd offer it to you." Ingrid's fingers tapped against the book, not speaking for several moments. "Dads coming back. What do you say?" "Fine. But I won't hesitate to stake you if this turns creepy." "Understood. Ready?" She nodded, staying seated while Vlad stood up to face their father. "You better have a damn good explanation Vladimir!" Casting an eye at Ingrid to check again, he got a short nod from her. "I do. I'm overriding your say so, and I'm claiming Ingrid. As my betrothed."

He choked on the blood he had been drinking, spraying a mouthful across Vlads face much to his disgust. Wiping it off, he waited for his father to find words. "Excuse me?" "You heard right. I'm invoking this law" he held up the book and pointed "to keep my future heirs purely Dracula. As the future Count Dracula myself, I and I alone can overturn you here. And as my betrothed, you can't push any other contract on to Ingrid." "You think you can defy me so easily?" Hissing angrily to further enforce his 'claim', Vlad took a step closer. "In just under three months, I will be the most powerful vampire to ever exist. I would think very carefully about alienating me. Father. Its your own fault really, never binding with Mum. If anything, I'm just extending my inheritance to the Westenra clan too, as Patrick makes mum ineligible and Wolfies technically illegal so he can't inherit either. Which leaves me. And Ingrid." The Count hissed back, forever complaining Vlad wasn't in touch with his vampire side, then acting angrily surprised when Vlad wasn't nice and compliant.

"I am your regent, I can overturn any contract involving you." "True, but I don't have to contractually file until I'm eighteen anyway, so there is nothing to overturn. And you will be made to regret trying to push a contract on Ingrid before then. Mark my words." "And where is your oh so irritating voice in all of this?" Their father aimed his next words at Ingrid, no doubt hoping she would reveal it was all some big joke, and things would all go his way. He seemed to forget who he was talking to however, Ingrid never made things easy for anyone but herself. "He's the chosen one. A good stepping stone." Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, Vlad took a step back to stand by Ingrid, her seated position meaning he was 'above' her. As tradition would state. "This is not over!" Thunder rolled outside as the Count stormed off in a blur, no doubt to punish furniture or something. "Well, I think that went well." "We haven't heard the last of it from him, you do realise that?" "Lighten up, I'm doing you a favour here." "I will still stake you, betrothed or not." "I would expect nothing less." Ingrid stood up, offering him a hug so brief he thought he may have imagined it. "Thank you."

-YD-

 **because I'm a shameless Vlad/Ingrid addict and this prompt was excellent to me, and because obviously what I need right now is another thing to write... I know, I'm terrible.**

 **This will be a glacial progress sort of thing, but you know me, can't resist these two!**


	2. Dancing

**Don't own the characters.**

 **I should be updating my other stories, instead I'm eating my body weight in ice cream and writing this.**

 **To the people following already, thank you!**

-YD-

Leaning against Ingrid's doorway (after knocking first), Vlad held up the piece of paper in his hand. "Two days until my eighteenth, ready to make the biggest splash in the vampire world until we publicly separate?" Vlad held out the contract to Ingrid, he had already signed it so it just needed hers. "Not before I read it." "Obviously. I was very careful to make sure the on pain of death was taken out if we annul the contract." The last three months had been pretty rough with their father, who was very aware he couldn't outright piss Vlad off, but Count Dracula was not a stupid vampire. He tried pointing out all the reasons Vlad shouldn't do this, then tried appealing to his unvampiric nature by saying binding to Ingrid was the darkest thing he could do. He even once accused Vlad of doing it just to annoy him, which ended in a physical altercation and the Count had avoided him since.

Speed reading meant Ingrid was done in a few minutes, pressing a fang to her thumb and placing a bloodied print in the paper. It glowed, the blood disappeared and was replaced by Ingrid's initials. "I was also careful to say nobody could cancel it but us. Bertrand's lessons on vampire law came in handy after all." "You are about to be Grand High Vampire, I should think they come in handy for something other than this you worm." Taking the paper back to file at the VHC two days from now, Vlad grinned cheekily. "Now that is no way to talk to your future bloodgroom." He then had to duck as Ingrid tossed a fireball at him, leaving a singe mark on her door frame. "I would say be careful, but dad not-so-politely said we should move to the East Wing of the school. So you essentially have your own quarters. I'll have to leave some of my things in there for show, but I thought you would appreciate it more than me."

Ingrid raised an eyebrow up at him, suspicious again. "Why me?" Sighing, Vlad indicated towards their father's room. "Because dad isn't afraid of you. He won't tell me to disappear off to my quarters, so I can roam freely and you can have your own space. Mostly." "You can move my coffin then, I don't trust you with my clothes." Rolling his eyes but smiling now Ingrid was acting like herself again, Vlad flicked his fingers to levitate the coffin. Given that she was still in it, Ingrid was not impressed and jumped out immediately. "You didn't say wait for you to get out of it." "You cockroach, don't be so stupid in future!" If he weren't floating her possession, Vlad would have at least expected a fireball again. Leaving Ingrid to sort her things, he leant the coffin outside his room and tossed a few books and clothes he rarely used in a bag to add to Ingrid's space. Taking her coffin to the East Wing attic, as it was high up, had no windows and was empty except for a desk and chair, he opened the stand and placed the coffin on it.

Placing his books on the desk, Vlad stepped aside as Ingrid blurred into the room. "All yours, I'm sure you'll make it your own. Few books, a jacket and a bottle of soya blood, it'll look like I live here too." Ingrid took the bag and almost politely kicked him out, apparently anxious to have her space all to herself. Flitting back to his room, Vlad put the paper in a pile with his clothes to visit the VHC for his "ceremony" soon and resumed flicking through books on the Council. Renfield dropped off a birthday card from Jonno, likely to be the only one he got, at least from someone who knew him. Vampires weren't big on birthday cards anyway, but as it was the chosen one coming of age he was already bracing himself for yet more attention. That went in a box containing the patch from his Stokely Grammar uniform, the little pink haired doll Chloe Branagh gave him for luck at his first blood test, a photo of him and Robin Branagh, a couple of family portrait paintings he never looked at anymore and something he took out and tore up - a valentines card from Erin. Incinerating the pieces, he locked the mementos box and pushed it back out of sight.

The edge of hunger gnawed at his stomach, the scent of blood in the air drawing him to the throne room. "Ah, Chosen One!" Recognising Augustus from the Carpathian Feast, Vlad bowed his head. "Augustus. I hope my father is an adequate host." "Of course. I just came to ensure everything was on track for your coronation. Not long now!" "Indeed. I have some reading to finish. I look forward to seeing you at the Council." "Yes, I look forward to the food, the drinking, the dancing. Such a shame there won't be any ritual draining of... Never mind." Augustus realised he was talking to the future ruler, and the one who had pushed for peace in the first place. "Wait, did you say dancing?" "But of course! I'm sure there will be a long line of vampiresses, and possibly even vampires, queuing to be your dance partner." "We shall find out." Vlad excused himself before he could cave to the scent of blood, vintage bottles open all over the table. And so he could panic slightly, he had no idea how to dance. Not to mention he would have to dance with Ingrid to fend off rabid chosen one fang-girls.

Ducking in to his room for a drink of soya to satisfy, if not totally sate his hunger, Vlad braced himself to go disturb Ingrid. Knocking the door, he got a sharp "what?" in response. "Its me, I need to talk to you." The door creaked open, allowing him in. "What's so important you're harassing me already?" Shifting his weight from one foot to the other, he shrugged. "Did you know my coronation was a dance?" "Of course. Any VHC function with female's invited is some kind of ball. As I personally oversaw the final invite list a month ago, I couldn't not be aware. Why?" "Well. We will have to be seen dancing together. And I don't know how to dance." Ingrid snorted into her drink, laughing aloud at his face. "How do you not know?" "When would I have learned exactly? The Hunt Ball, while Van Helsing kidnapped me? Or maybe the Valentines ball where Robin spilled the Le Trappe and I was on the run? Oh, wait, it would have been at the failed coronation where we all almost got killed?" "Alright, alright, stop ranting coffin breath."

Ingrid drained her goblet, then climbed up out of her coffin. "I'm only doing this so you don't embarrass me, I don't give a flying garlic bulb if you embarrass yourself." He would have been unnerved by any other motivation, though Vlad still found it very strange to stand this close to Ingrid when they weren't hiding or trying to slay each other. Ingrid rolled her eyes and slapped the back of his head. "I know this is weird, I'm not happy about it either, but if you look this terrified of me nobody is going to believe you're bad and evil enough to flout tradition and utilise loopholes for your own ends. Now stand up straight." His body obeyed her snappish tone without thought, straightening up. Vlad couldn't help grimacing as Ingrid moved his hand to her waist, the other held in hers.

"This is so weird. How many VHC balls are there?" "Overall? About twenty a year, mostly hosted by different members of the Council to try and 'network' with each other and bribe new laws through. So get used to it." Sighing and looking over Ingrid's shoulder, he stood waiting for instructions. "Step backwards, left then right." That went fine, but he misjudged the space between them when stepping forwards and stumbled. "Idiot. Again, without the drunken bat impression." This time he stepped back too far and stumbled again, Ingrid letting go of him so he wouldn't take her down with him. "For the love of garlic Vlad, do you have any coordination in that bag of bones you call a body?" "Just because natural balance seemed to skip my genetics. Come on, lets try again." This time they stood a little further apart so Vlad could watch the way they stepped, slowly improving until he didn't need to stare at the floor. "Don't get too excited, that's the easiest part." "Figures. Its not my fault this is weird, I wanted to do us both a favour not humiliate myself for all eternity trying to dance with my sister."

"Vamp up and pretend I'm a breather you love or something. Whatever ends this torture faster." Once he had the basic footwork down, Vlad found it easier to learn the revolving and swaying on the spot. The 'spins' were done in very slow motion, so he didn't accidentally throw Ingrid to the floor or through the wall or something. Eventually, Ingrid declared him competent enough to survive the first ball, as long as he moved as little as vampirically possible and just did what she showed him. "Are they all just steps and spinning?" "In a way, but timing and learning the others posture is important in harder dances. Stick with simplicity, you're lucky everyone else will be following your lead. Otherwise you would probably do something stupid like try to dip and push some poor vampire grave digger girl to the floor. Actually, that would be funny. Do that." Feeling raised by a modicum of success, Vlad grabbed Ingrid and tried to "dip" her. "Like this, except letting go?" "Don't you dare maggot face!" He was about to step back when the door opened, revealing their father.

Instinct was to break apart, but the deception they were fooling their father with took precedence, so Vlad stood and kept hold of Ingrid, ignoring his discomfort as they were not tactile siblings. "What? We're busy." "Yes, I see that." "So tell us what you're interrupting for and get out of our quarters." Choosing his words carefully, Vlad had to be forceful but not too angry and not forget this was "their" space. "I came to give you one last chance Vlad, give up this nonsense and have your pick of eligible vampiresses at your coronation!" "I can hear you you know." "Oh be quiet Ingrid, this is between me and my son!" Moving away from Ingrid, Vlad tried to look possessive rather than simply tired of his father's attitude. "She is my betrothed. You have less than two days to adjust your attitude, or you'll find yourself homeless and an exiled outcast in the vampire world. And for the blood on top of the entrails, I'll sign over head of the clan to Ingrid anyway." That made him splutter angrily, hissing and fangs and red eyes.

Vlad stood and let him, waiting for the tantrum to pass. Ingrid rolled her eyes at the side of him, bored. "Done?" "Fine. Don't come crawling back to me when this all comes back on you." "Don't pick a fight you can't win. Father." The Count disappeared, and the siblings finally separated. "I thought he was going to spontaneously burst into dust when you said you would sign over head of the clan to me." "Yeah. If he thought about it for a second, he would have realised you would be Countess Dracula regardless if we were blood bound." "He's an idiot, surely you realise that." Nodding at Ingrid, Vlad checked his watch. "Nearly sunrise, and more than enough dancing. I'm going to go to my coffin and pretend this never happened." "Likewise, I had you tripping over and touching me. I feel like sunbathing just to feel less gross." "Well, until the coronation then my dear bloodwife." Ingrid threw another fireball at him as he left, threatening to stake him in his sleep for good measure.

In the midst of all this bizarre deception, and his life about to change irrevocably, it was nice to see someone acting normal.

-YD-

 **I guessed Ingrid being able to dance because we have seen her do it (Hunt Ball & the 'fango' with Malik), and Vlad having no clue because when would he have learned? Plus it was a funny thought in general when they don't do hugs or anything.**


	3. Coronation

**Not my characters.**

 **I see this ending up like Arrogant, in that I mildly neglect my other stories to write it... But I've finished one, and updated the other two today so I feel less guilty coming back to it.**

 **Nothing else to say I guess, other than the usual.**

 **On we go!**

-YD-

"Ready?" Vlad stood fixing his cape, betrothed contract rolled up and tucked in his jacket. "I feel high as the sun in the sky right now!" As midnight ticked in, Vlad felt like liquid energy had replaced his muscles and brain. "Not surprised, your eyes are still glowing." He couldn't see it, but Ingrid had been ready to go for midnight, both somehow forgetting Vlad's powers would kick in as he turned eighteen. "Hey, at least nobody can argue my status now." "Whatever. Are you ready to go?" As a "couple", their outfits were chosen to compliment the others, and naturally Ingrid had chosen his in spite of it traditionally being the other way around. "As I'll ever be. Ready to cause a splash?" "Always." He had to admit they looked the part, Ingrid's crimson corset and belt the same shade as his waistcoat and tie. Her dress glittered in the candlelight, the lapels of his suit jacket imitating that.

"Best get going before they send out a search party." Ingrid nodded, pushing her long dark hair over her shoulder and shifting to her bat form. Vlad followed suit, flapping out of the window left open for that very purpose. The trip to Transylvania was short, not even a little taxing on his new powers as he and Ingrid landed. The building was large, imposing and about to belong to Vlad in its entirety. "So, Hack first? I know he's your biggest fan." "At least he's only interested in smokey panda crisps and raw meat. I sent ahead a gift basket, don't worry." Chuckling to himself at Ingrid's look of disdain (she hated raw meat, too messy), Vlad stepped up to the Vampire Resources desk. "Ah, you're here! We were beginning to worry. Evening Miss Dracula." Ignoring the slight of greeting Ingrid and not him, he could correct Hack later, Vlad held out the contract. "And this is?" "A betrothal contract, I intend to announce publicly but it needs to be filed first." Ingrid pulled up her entirely feigned 'sweet' smile, and Hack didn't even look at the paper closely. "You can file that now for me, right Hack? Its all in order, signed and checked."

"For you Ingrid, of course. And yourself Chosen One, naturally." Vlad waited until the paper was safely in the 'accepted' box Ingrid indicated before he relaxed. "Who is the contract for anyway?" Twin smirks crossed the Draculas faces - they both took amusement in creating drama, Ingrid for the sake of chaos, Vlad for the fun of destroying expectations - as they answered. "Us." Hack dropped the bag of crisps he was holding, looking up at the two of them. "I'm sorry?" "You heard right. Ingrid is now officially my betrothed, and you know the contract wouldn't have filed if it weren't legal. Thank you Hack, feel free to call up an assistant and join the party." Vlad held out an arm, Ingrid taking it and they flitted off up to the room the ceremony awaited Vlad was held in. They stopped a corridor away, falling into laughter. "I've never seen him put down something he hadn't finished before. This is going to be fun." "Yeah, makes up for the awkward dancing practice!" Composing themselves to typical "resting death plotting" faces, Vlad held his hand out towards the doors, which opened. "Show time."

The chatter and music fell silent as they walked in, all eyes turning to the Dracula twosome. Vlad caught his father, surrounded by vampiresses half his age, who all stopped talking to him to stare at Vlad. "Don't stop partying on my account, we are celebrating right?" Nobody seemed to know what to make of it, Vlad walking in with Ingrid at his side already a powerful statement, even if they weren't touching now. Eventually Ustrel Bouderon - the current leader of the High Council, about to be shifted to second now Vlad was of age - stepped forward, dropping to one knee and bowing his head. "Chosen One. We welcome you." About half the other vampires also followed suit, but many stayed standing, looking at Vlad in distrust. "THIS is the new Grand High Vampire? You've got to be kidding." Deciding the inevitable dusting would be best got out of the way early, Vlad lazily pointed one finger at the Vampire challenging him, who fell to the ground in a cloud of dusty death. "Anyone else?" Any vampire still standing, except Ingrid naturally, dropped to their knees too.

"Good. Now stand up, I believe we have a coronation to get through." The coronation was dull, full of swearing to uphold chaos and evil, which Vlad intended to change when he had a handle on procedure - Ingrid's early study when she was winning her place on the Council came in exceptionally handy - until they finally presented him with the Crown of Power. This was the ultimate test, with the Chosen One alive the Crown would dust anyone trying to take his place. Sighing at the circle of bones "carved from victims from the dawn of time", Vlad knelt in front of Ustrel - as the host, this was his job to present the Crown to Vlad. Something was off, Vlad could feel it. Having worn the Crown once already, he knew how it felt around him, like it was calling him.

"Nice try, but you can't fool me." Vlad stood, reaching a hand up to the fake crown and crumbling it to pieces. "I can sense the real Crown, I think you should test it out for me though." Vlad pushed Ustrel down, holding out his free hand to summon the true Crown of Power. "Apologies your grandness! Please!" "Don't be so pathetic." Placing the Crown on the restrained vampires head, he watched dispassionately as the Vampire screamed and exploded. "So, now we know this is the real deal, anyone else stupid enough to try and stop me?" Nobody stepped forward, so Vlad held the bones over his head and lowered it down. He felt the connection, the way it recognised every fibre of his power and amplified it, a far better fit than it had been when he used it to save his family back in Stokely. Now he was truly the ultimate power, and it felt... good.

The doors opened again, revealing a still slightly shell shocked Hack. "Ah, just in time. Before the festivities continue, I am happy to announce my betrothral. To Ingrid Dracula." Ingrid moved to stand next to him, confidence always a plus in her when things like this happened. "Is this some sort of joke? How is that even legal?" "Not a joke, I filed the contract on our way here. Isn't that right Councillor Hack?" The short, fat man nodded, a general hum of discontent echoing through the halls, and he saw the triumphant expression on his father's face. "You could choose any vampiress in the world. Why stay so close to home?" The question was unusually polite for a vampire, so Vlad felt it acceptable to answer. "Exactly that. Who else can I know well enough to be sure of their motivrs for seeking me out? After the attempt on my life by Adze Ramanga, I learnt to be more cautious. And to secure my own contract. As for the rest, I don't answer to anyone but myself. So if you have a problem, I have no issues with dusting the floor with your insolence. Shall we continue?"

Those not slightly dumbfounded shook their heads, so Vlad pulled off the Crown and tucked it into his jacket. He owed Ingrid a big bottle of vintage blood for teaching him how to answer, she had been fighting disbelief and bias all her life. Born a somewhat spoiled heir and chosen for something bigger than himself, Vlad had been able to coast along before now without learning. Refusing to be embarrassed by Vlad messing up, Ingrid gave him etiquette for vampires lessons beforehand. Outside of the discomfort, Vlad felt like this while charade may end up being the step he and Ingrid needed to put aside their differences and get along properly. He hoped so, hoped that when Ingrid found someone she wanted, and someone she chose rather than had pushed on her, that their sibling relationship would stay strong.

Miming to the band to start again, Vlad took a step down. "This is a party, feel free to get back to it!" Slowly but surely, with a general air of shock, vampires went back to eating, drinking and dancing. A few members of the High Council came to introduce themselves formally to Vlad, and one even thanked him for dusting Ustrel, he had apparently been too arrogant and full of himself even for them. "Considering he knew he would be passing on the mantel, he kept trying to work out how to get around it." "Well he's the dust around my boots now, and I have my rightful place. If you'll excuse me gentlemen, I must take a dance with my divine looking partner" he cringed internally as he said it, but no male here with Ingrid would fail to point out she was more than conventionally attractive, so he made sure to say so for realism "before any upstart men meet their death trying to move in on her." "Of course Your Grandness. We look forward to seeing you head up the next meeting." They each inclined their heads in a short bow, then moved off to their respective partners or a servant carrying blood around.

Heading to stand in front of Ingrid, a few hopeful looking vampires scattered. "Enjoying the party?" "Watching a room full of vampires who were laughing at a female on the VHC now terrified to even look the wrong way at me? Priceless." Sharing a smile with her, which would look to anyone watching like they were exchanging looks and words of love or devotion he supposed, Vlad held out a hand. "I need this dance before people start suspecting this is as much a cover up as it is." Ingrid looked to be barely restraining herself from rolling her eyes, but took his hand and moved closer to him. His muscles moved more fluidly now, practice and seemingly a new natural grace taking hold as he and Ingrid danced. Leaning in close to her ear and trying not to laugh, Vlad whispered "is dad still glaring?" Ingrid returned the favour, stretching up close to him and whispering back "like he would dust us with a look if he could. Lucky only you can do that really." Amusement danced in her eyes as they moved to look at each other, and they had to look away just to stop themselves laughing. "How were the Council Members?" "Given more than half of them are jealous but not stupid enough to challenge me for your hand, surprisingly polite. The test will be at the next meeting when I swap the seating around. Can't have the Chosen Ones betrothed sitting so far away."

"Typical. Still, means none of them will drool over me. I already discounted all current members of the Council. Any plans to change them?" A particularly bold vampiress was giving Vlad the eye over Ingrid's shoulder, which was adding to Vlad's barely suppressed laughter at someone brave enough to challenge Ingrid while they were literally touching like partners. "Not yet, I'll wait to see who tries to undermine me soon and work to replace them slowly. A total overhaul won't inspire confidence, their experience matters right now but I won't hesitate to make an example of them if I have to. Anyone I should be keeping an eye on?" "Hack is already mine on a silver platter. Morgan is ambitious, and secretive but smart. Vaskow has the brain capacity of a garlic bulb, but is easily bribed by the others. The other three are as yet unknown quantities." "Got it. Now we can stop this before I start laughing hysterically, still weird." "Agreed." Timed well, the song quieted as they seperated, bowing slightly to each other. As awkward as it was, it had worked. And only a few dust piles, so more successful than Vlad had expected. Now all they had to do was keep up the illusion... Oh, and he was grand high vampire now. The first thought that inspired in Vlad was "I need a drink".

-YD-

 **Happy Birthday Vlad!**

 **I adore season five, but it doesn't suit the story I'm writing here. Sorry Sally and George!**


	4. Memories

**Not my characters.**

 **Hey lookie, I already uploaded one chapter today and I accidentally started writing this next one. Oops.**

 **On we go!**

-YD-

Aside from Ingrid using a piece of broken crate to stake a waiter who spilled a tray of blood goblets over her shoes (she was wearing heeled boots, Vlad was still confused), the last hours of the party passed without much incident. Stifling a yawn, Vlad sought out his sister. "Ready to go?" "Definitely. If one more dust dodging creep older than dad tries to tell me age is experience, I will vomit on them. Blood poisoning was less painful." Vlad understood, any time he and Ingrid weren't stood together, vampiresses young and old were attempting to garner his attentions. "I know exactly how you feel. Lets go." Jumping up on the nearest table, Vlad waved at the band to stop. "I need to get my dear betrothed home now, but I wanted to thank everyone for coming. I look forward to seeing many of you again. Good night!" Climbing down, Vlad grabbed Ingrid's arm and flitted out. "Let go of me bat breath." Ingrid scowled as they got outside, but she smirked eventually. "Well that was fun. More than rolling around in the sunlight anyway." "Oh yes, I love attempts at being usurped, a millenia old woman trying to kiss me and dancing with political undertones."

Ingrid let out a short laugh at the reminder, their 'close and intimate' dance mostly a conversation about Council Members. "I thought dad was going to blow his coffin top." "He still might. Lets get back before sun rise." They jumped, reappearing as two bats against the moon and flapping back to Garside. Landing back in Ingrid's quarters, Vlad looked around. "I'm going to hang here today, dad needs time to cool off." Ingrid raised an eyebrow, somehow looking as though Vlad had actually said "lets get married tomorrow so you can spawn my heirs". "I'm not invading your space, don't worry." Stripping off his cape, then putting his jacket up carefully, Vlad shifted back into his bat form and hung from the ceiling. "You could just get your own coffin up here, but I suppose that works." Vlad wasn't sure Ingrid meant for him to hear that, it wasn't nearly sarcastic enough. Closing his eyes and drawing his wings in, Vlad settled down to sleep for the day. He disliked sleeping in bat form, but it beat dealing with his father and sleeping in here added to their performance beyond the door.

Vlad woke before Ingrid, and she looked younger, softer without the killer heels, dark makeup and cape she had on last night. Still, Vlad knew she was still ninety nine percent crazed killer, and one percent big sister who saved his life. Picking up his cape and jacket, Vlad left her to wake in her own time and headed to change out of last nights clothes. Feeling much more himself in a t-shirt and jeans, a simple black button up short sleeved shirt over the top and canvas trainers rather than heavy boots, Vlad went to raid the blood cellar for soya blood. "Ah, good evening your highness." "Dad, you only get a warning because your my father. Watch your tone." He hadn't intended for his and Ingrid's deception to alienate their father, but Vlad was so tired of being told what to do, and the Count needed to learn he was no longer his regent, and had zero control over Vlad now.

"You do realise, of course, as Ingrid's father it is my job to fight contracts on her behalf." "You realise she doesn't want you to, and if you continue on this path to challenge me you lose not one, but both of your heirs? As if you lose one, you lose us both as a future bound couple." His father scowled as Vlad knocked back another challenge. "I was careful to have our contract worded to say only Ingrid or I can cancel it, precisely to stop you trying. And it's officially filed now, so I would play safe and give up if I were you father. Just friendly advice." That won him another tantrum, fangs and red eyes and a sudden shift to thunderstorm outside Garside. Calmly drinking from the bottle of soya, mostly because it annoyed his father to see him do so, Vlad waited. "Of course, you could always invite Malik back. Assuming you can find him. And don't mind getting staked the minute your back is turned."

His father finally growled angrily and flitted off, leaving Vlad alone for a few minutes until Ingrid appeared next to him. "Another friendly chat?" She smirked as she pulled down her own bottle, though she decanted hers in to a glass before drinking. "My favourite yet, he brought up his role to fight contracts on your behalf." "Oh please, if it were any other vampire in the world he would have offered to get Renfield making that potion that silenced me. Forgetting that it wouldn't stop me dusting him of course." Nodding and leaning on the table, Vlad drank some more soya before he answered. "Its more annoyance he had no say in it, and his loss in status as my regent. And possible nightmares about us sharing a coffin." "Gross." "True. But you like making dad angry, so he doesn't need to know we think that." Ingrid nodded to concede his point, resuming her drinking of blood.

"Besides, we don't have to stay here for much longer." That caught Vlad's attention then. "Are we eloping?" "I'm beginning to think you aren't taking this betrothal seriously. Garlic breath. Ustrel had a year to vacate the official Grand High Vampire domicile, but you took care of that. His clan have a month to claim his possessions, then the castle is cleared of everything not specifically owned by the Council. So in four weeks from now at the latest, you own your own castle." "No. We do. My reasons for asking you to do this weren't selfless, but this is equal regardless. Never let me turn into dad." Ingrid looked at him closely for a minute, then nodded. "Fair enough. I promise to fang cuff you to a sun bed if you turn into a sexist fangless idiot." "You're so romantic." "I will kill you." Smirking and draining his bottle, Vlad decided this was his amusement for the night. "Oh, keep sweet talking me Ingrid." Ducking the spark of lightning Ingrid threw at him, Vlad ran.

"Get back here maggot face!" Tossing a fireball back at her, Vlad noticed it burned blue rather than yellow, but ignored it in favour of winding Ingrid up more. "Catch me if you can darling!" "Stand still so I can throw you in the garlic pit!" Vlad just about caught his father watching in confusion as he bolted past, Ingrid hot on his heels. "Is that a euphemism? It's not a good one!" They kept going, tossing slightly lethal attacks back and forth with her threatening death, and him pretending to take it as flirting. His chuckles became full on laughter, stopping him in his tracks as he stopped in Ingrid's/their room. Ingrid caught him there, but his laughter was contagious and she joined him in it. "You're a first rate dust brain, you know that?" Fighting to speak through his breathless lungs, Vlad grinned. "Admit it, when was the last time you had that much fun? Without an actual murder at least." Ingrid tried to stop smiling, but kept falling back into breathless giggles. "I'll give you that, its been a while. However, I am 20 years old and the princess of darkness, I will rip off your wings and stuff you with them if you ever tell anyone."

"Vampires honour. It's nice to see you smile when you aren't plotting multiple stakings." "Shut up or I'll go back to plotting yours. I'll never understand why you try to be so nice." Feeling the walls between them rebuilding, Vlad bit back a sigh. "It's not trying when I'm being nice, I have to make a conscious effort to act more vampiric. Anyway, I'll leave you to it, I need to finish reading up for tomorrow night. First official meeting as Grand High Vampire." Ingrid turned away from him, so Vlad left her there and sat at the desk in the library, continuing on with his pile of books on council history and procedure. Random things made him miss Bertrand, who understood all the wordy Latin and how to write perfect reports, could index a hundred books in a night and how he would bring Vlad a goblet of soya, or convince him to go to his coffin when the sun was up. The joyous mood from earlier dissipated under guilt, and he ignored the tears even as they made the words on the pages blur.

Deciding he could learn what he didn't know by now in ' the field' so to speak, he shoved the books aside and went to splash water on his face, washing away the evidence of emotion on his skin. Checking there were still a few hours til sunrise, Vlad ran out to the courtyard and leapt into bat form, wings beating at his sides and Vlad felt like all his troubles stayed on the ground. Wind under his wings, the moonlight on his back, his father had been right about some of this. Vlad had no desire to go looking for blood though, just to forget his problems for a short while. Up here, he wasn't in charge of a whole race, juggling a cease-fire almost permanently on the edge of crumbling beneath him, his father wasn't angry at him and his sister wasn't hiding a soul under darkness. Realising the sky was starting to lighten, Vlad turned and flew back to Garside. In spite of having lived here more than twice as long as he had back in Stokely, this place didn't really feel like home. Too much had happened here, ghosts of love, loss, grief and war in every corner if he let himself look.

He was surprised to find Ingrid in his room, leaning against his coffin. "What did I do now?" Tired and emotional, he wanted to collapse in his coffin and hope for no nightmares before tonight's meeting. Ingrid wasn't forthcoming, and Vlad tried not to get irritated. "I haven't got time for your games, I need sleep Ingrid." Ingrid stood up, stepping to invade his space somewhat. "I wanted to apologise. Well, want is a strong word. I needed to, for all your faults, I would be dead if you didn't have a conscience, a soul. So I'm sorry." The last time they had hugged like this, it was when Ingrid had been pretending to be "changed" whilst plotting his death, and he had just found out Erin was a slayer. "And now I'm going to go wash my brain with garlic so I forget this touchy breathy nonsense." "Don't forget to sleep, I won't have latecomers at my first meeting." Ingrid shoved his arm as she left, and he caught the shadow of a genuine smile before he turned back to his coffin. Shaking his head and changing out out of his wind-creased clothes, Vlad lay down and clicked his fingers to close the lid.

When he woke that night, he was almost totally certain he had dreamed the whole exchange with Ingrid before sleep that morning. Black jeans and a comfortable t-shirt safely hidden beneath his council robes, VHC and GHV stitched elegantly into the chest pockets at either side, Vlad dug the crown out of his jacket. Technically he was supposed to wear it at all times, but there wasn't a chance in sunlight he was trying to sleep in it, let alone wear it for around his home. "That crown is supposed to make you look powerful and important, but it looks like you tried to make a flower crown out of what you found around the house on you." "Cheers Ingrid." "Anytime Vladarella." Smiling to himself, Vlad was glad this particular attire didn't require a cape, he really hated capes. "Do I have to carry the staff with skulls on?" "Only on official business, so you should be holding it at meetings and definitely have it when you have to go out to visit anyone. Especially if you're there to dust them." "Great." "Suck it up chosen one."

"The irony of being called the Chosen One when you don't get any choice at all." Vlad wished he had a reflection right now, to see just how ridiculous he looked in this get up. "How long before mum hrsrs our 'news'" Vlad made air quotes around the word news, for added sarcasm "and turns up here trying to balance accusing us of sheer madness and gaining favour with the most powerful couple in the vampire world?" Ingrid contemplated his words for a moment before she answered. "Depends how active Granny is with the council since Grandpa died I guess. I mean, she wasn't at your bloodbinding day to Adze, or even invited to the coronation. Because mum isn't much in touch with vampire stuff other than through her, especially since Lucinda got dusted in that slayer attack back in Transylvania." Atilla Westenra, frail with age after almost a millenia and a half, had succumbed to a bout of fang-cephalitis three years ago, though they hadn't heard until a year after the fact, being in hiding as they were.

"I would sign over my inheritance of the Westenra clan to you now, but it would kind of out us as there would be no need to when we are supposedly going to inherit them together." "I get it. You can make it my bloodbinding gift in the future, since there is no more wedding peasants with your garlic-awful cease-fire." Stepping into his boots, Vlad glanced down at his watch. "We better get going. I'm meant to be there first after all." The two headed off to Transylvania, greeting Hack - who had a mouthful of what Vlad thought was chipmunk - on their way in, already fighting laughter at the confused look on the mans face. Two security team members greeted Vlad formally, offering short bows to Ingrid as she was 'with Vlad'. "Your Grandness, I present you with the staff to compliment your crown." "Thank you mister..." "Roqueloire. You can call me Roque if it's easier sir." Vlad nodded at the man, his hair short and grey but eyes keen and intelligent.

The staff made him uncomfortable, the skulls higher than his less-than-towering height and he felt like they were looking at him. Plus he wasn't used to walking with it, and even if she was masking laughter behind her hand, Vlad was glad only Ingrid could see him clumsily trying to walk with the staff. Sitting at the head of the table, he caught Ingrid smirking as she moved Morgan's things to her spot, taking her new position immediately next to him. "Do try not to get too excited, I don't want them thinking I moved you to get lucky." Ingrid kicked him under the table with a sweet, entirely feigned smile on her face. Vlad flicked through the paperwork in front of him quickly, predictably about the cease-fire he expected at least one of them to try and poke holes in. "Think we can get through this without a dusting?" "I don't make promises I can't keep." Ingrid smirked as they stood, ready to greet the arriving members for Vlad's first meeting as Grand High Vampire.

-YD-

 **Two chapters in one day and I'm already planning the next chapter to write tomorrow for this. Then I should probably get back to Vl-Adam-Ir and Chosen Two. Maybe. I'm excited for where this story is going! Which makes it hard to think about my other stories, gotta love autistic obsessive fanfic authors right?**


	5. Emotions

**Not my characters.**

 **Oops back again. I can't help it, I feel compelled to keep writing this!**

 **On we go!**

-YD-

Each vampire stepped in, bowing slightly to Vlad and Ingrid, except Morgan who looked like he would burst a blood vessel when he saw Ingrid had moved. "Gentlemen, I believe you know my betrothed?" That made Morgan realise his place, at least for now and he too bowed before taking Ingrid's old spot at the end of the table. When Vlad sat down, they followed suit and everyone picked up the files in front of them. "So, straight to it. The cease fire is working, but I am open to hearing anyone who finds fault with it. If your only fault is that you can't hunt breathers, I'll hand you over to the slayers guild myself. Anyone?" "How do we know it's working?" Vaskow, the one Ingrid had already told him wasn't the sharpest fang in the neck, quizzed. "The weekly stats are all in front of you. Week on week, biting and slaying are declining. And thanks to the slayers guild running blood drives, donated blood is higher than ever."

"You're taking away our identity as a race of hunters." "Not at all. Hunt animals. Indulge your instincts there, but if the way vampires lived before I was born was working, I wouldn't be here now. If you think you're a better fit for the job Morgan, you're welcome to try on the Crown." The old vampire held Vlad's gaze, and half the table watched the exchange with looks of anticipation (Ingrid had started filing her nails, they had had this conversation before). When Morgan didn't answer, Vlad indicated the server could bring in the blood for the meeting. The blood here was donated, Vlad would drink soya but that would leave him open to poisoning as the only one who would touch it. If they all had to drink from the same jug, it would be much harder to pull off. Raised by Count Dracula, Vlad and Ingrid were intelligent and used to plotting enough that they waited until every other vampire took a sip from their goblet before drinking their own.

The second part of the meeting went on to a pair of vampire brothers who had been out siring multiple dimidius children, risking their exposure more and more each time. "The dimidius laws need looking at, but I agree this cannot continue. Have them found, we will need to take them alive to find their offspring and go from there." "What do you mean by that?" Corvax, fairly new to the council himself after replacing his cousin, challenged Vlad next. "The old laws are defunct, I may have laid the first stone by dating a slayer girl, but when our two worlds are united execution for having kids is not going to fly. But that's another issue for another meeting, the Lecushka brothers need to be stopped. Regardless of what happened to their clan, this is not the way to fix it." "As you wish, your Grandness." The sarcasm was well hidden, but it was definitely there.

"Speaking of clans, Bouderon wasn't married, who is left of his clan now?" Jacob, who was an outcast of his clan but fiercely intelligent, powerful and the one who thanked Vlad for dusting Ustrel, answered. "He has a sister, a cousin and an illegitimate daughter. They have all been properly notified. None of them lived in the Grand High Castle however, so it will be a case of them collecting his things." Nodding his thanks, Vlad checked nobody else had a pertinent point to bring up, adjourned the meeting, drained his goblet and handed off his staff to Roque. "Its safety will be my top priority sir." "Thank you Roque. Until next time." The two exchanged bows, then Vlad beckoned to Ingrid and headed outside. "How was it?" "You could have done with dusting Morgan, but I think you shocked them into submission for now with your direct approach to the dimidius laws." Shrugging as he and Ingrid walked away from the building, Vlad looked up to the moon. "Its not even just about uniting the worlds, it must be terrifying to have all the weird things like accidentally flaming and floating as a teenager and no idea why. Not to mention the lack of blood mirror access, it just needs to be a better system."

Ingrid didn't answer, simply shifting into bat form and flapping off to Garside. Vlad followed suit, handing off his council robes to Renfield to launder and dropping the ridiculous crown into his coffin lid. "I need to set up a meeting with Jonno soon, explain I'm leaving the UK. And reassure the slayers guild the peace stands now I'm in charge." "Yes Master Vlad. Will you be taking me with you?" "Of course Zoltan, I wouldn't leave you behind." The stuffed wolf sighed in pleasure when Vlad scratched the back of his neck, a constant companion and the only one of his family to stand up for his 'good side' when his reflections took over. "I'll have to get you shipped over though, so you'll have to stay silent and still for the journey." "Such indignities for a hell hound." Chuckling, Vlad offered Zoltan a chewy bat and headed down to the training room to burn off some frustration on the punch bag. Now Garside was empty, he had no concerns about running on the sports field, flitting parts of the way to test his new speed.

"What are you doing coffin breath?" Ingrid found him sat on the floor of the training room, legs crossed and items floating in front of him. "Meditating, it's necessary to keep hold on my powers. And just generally training, figured I owed it to Bertrand at least to keep it up after all the effort he put in with me." Ingrid amused herself fingering the spines of Bertrands library, or at least the ones he had kept in here to help Vlad train. "I take it you'll be bringing his things with us?" "Well he's a half fang, and not tied to any clan so if I don't, they'll just stay here gathering dust." Giving up on reaching a trance state now Ingrid had decided to irritate him, Vlad stood and stretched, levitating the items he had been practicing with back to their usual spots. "We'll have to get a double coffin, and have a room set up that looks like we share it." "I can do that. You take whatever space you want, as long as I have a room, a training place, a library and somewhere to relax, I'm good." "Right answer breather boy." "I do have the advantage of having known you my whole life." They adjourned to the blood cellar, pouring goblets of blood and sitting at the table.

"So there's a meeting every week, a couple of special events a month, two months council recess except for emergencies and I am basically always kind of on call. Have I got this right?" "Pretty much. You'll need to review the members of the war cabinet, select your own private security or bodyguard for when you're outside the VHC or your home, like Justice Morai back in Stokely." Thinking of Roqueloire already, though he needed time to form a better opinion of the man and possibly meet the rest of the security options at Council, Vlad nodded. "Thanks Ingrid, I would be a little lost in it all if you didn't know all this." "I need you knowing how to do this, given that you need to change the laws that let dad try to marry me off." Vlad didn't know what made him hope Ingrid had a different motivation, he knew her well enough to know Ingrid looked out for Ingrid above almost anything else. "I will. Nobody should have to marry someone they don't love, especially when there is no divorce in vampire culture." Thinking of how close he had been to biting Adze, to eternal misery in a loveless binding, though as she planned to kill him that wouldn't have been long, still made him shudder.

"Sorry for helping there, guess I didn't appreciate what it meant until I was facing the same prospect. Minus the assassination attempt, you could have done worse than her though. Lineage-side anyway." Drinking deeply to hide his surprise at such a casually offered apology from Ingrid, Vlad shrugged. "Would have made it real awkward when you became my mother in law though." "Go sit on a stake, you know I would have gotten Ramanga dusted after a year at most." The siblings shared a laugh, the whole thing had paled in comparison to Elisabetta afterwards and they had never really talked about it. "Do you think Malik will come back?" "He's bound to. We're taking the blood mirror with us though, so it'll be me he has to fight, dad would end up dust." "And if Erin's with him?" "I'll stake her myself." Ingrid looked surprised, and if he was honest in himself Vlad was surprised by how much he meant it. "Don't you feel bound to her, your first bite and all?"

"Common misconception, I don't share my power if I don't want to. Obviously not something I shared, only Bertrand knew." "So Adze was wasting her time?" "When she had Erin on the roof, I would have to save her. But at the ceremony, yes." "And you didn't with Erin?" "No. I think part of me knew Erin would resent me for it, and I held back. I didn't need her strong enough to kill me on the spot, I needed time to make her understand. Instead, she fucked Malik and we all know how it ended." Ingrid raised an eyebrow in surprise, so Vlad elaborated. "Think about it, if I hadn't been against biting breathers, my first bite would have been some ultra powerful stranger on the street." "Good point." Pouring a new glass of soya, Vlad looked at it. "I don't think this tastes much different to a standard bottle of blood. Its no classic vintage, but I think a lot of people ignore it because of snobbish choice, not because they ever tried it." Ingrid looked at him in distaste, clearly disagreeing. "It isn't the same though, and you know it. You need twice as much just to stop feeling thirsty." "That could change, I plan to put a team of alchemists on it to improve the taste and satiating characteristics."

"You have been thinking. Wonders never cease." "I don't know why I try to help you, you're so mean to me." "Vamp up you little maggot. That was basically a compliment." Supposing that was true when it came to Ingrid, Vlad merely continued sipping his drink. They parted ways again for the sunrise, and Vlad wasn't sure what to make of the whole night but she hadn't threatened to stake him for messing up the meeting, and they had even had a relatively amicable conversation, positively friendly by Ingrid's usual standards. The rest of the week passed in relative comfort, Vlad had started packing up his things, next week he would start boxing up Bertrands books and training gear - the VHC had to ship it as Customs may question a box of axes and books on being five hundred years old or cultivating bog maggots. And he wanted another meeting under his belt before he was overwhelmed with guilt for killing his tutor out of anger at his ex girlfriend.

Dressing in his council robes again and pushing the Crown onto his head, Vlad stood waiting for Ingrid in the courtyard. Rather than walk, she dropped out of nowhere next to him. "I unlive in hope Morgan gets dusted tonight, if he walks behind me to stare at my ass once more I'm doing it." "I'll pull him aside, threaten him off. If that doesn't stop him, then you can dust him. He may be horrible, but his clan is old and respected. He gets one chance." Ingrid grumbled but acquiesced, and they left for Transylvania afterwards. They were earlier than last time, and Vlad caught Roque talking to a girl wearing strange clothes, dreadlocked hair and had a piercing through her eyebrow which was rather strange in vampire customs. "Ah, Your Grandness. Apologies, I was talking to my daughter. May I introduce Talitha Roqueloire." The girl bowed to Vlad, and threw Ingrid a strange look but replaced it quickly. "Feels a bit pointless, but I'm Vladimir Dracula. Nice to meet you. Ready Roque?"

The vampire handed Vlad his staff with a bow, walked him to the meeting room before leaving again. "I think I offended your fangirl with my mere presence." "Starting early then?" Ingrid smirked, leaning against the table. "Don't let me stop you going for the hippie chick, it's not like I'm going to be jealous." That comment sparked a point in Vlad's mind, while he was doing this thing for Ingrid to look for someone she wanted, he was effectively totally single. And it had been a while since Erin by now. And he wasn't a saint. "Vlad? You still there?" Ingrid clicked her fingers in front of his face, snapping him out of his thoughts. He was saved the trouble of answering by the other vampires appearing, ending their conversation as they took their spots. This meeting didn't vary much from the last, other than an update on the Lecushka brothers being tracked down to America. "We shall keep you updated of course, and you'll be summoned when they are captured." "Thank you Jacob. Any other business?" There was none, so Vlad stood to leave, dropping by Roque to put his staff away and spotting Talitha again.

She waved as he passed, so he awkwardly waved back and fought a laugh as Ingrid pretended to drag him off. "Not when I'm stood right here, I would rather not look like someone who lets 'her man' philander in front of her." was hissed in his ear as they got outside. "I waved back, I didn't propose to her. But you're right, I'm sorry. This is going to take some getting used to." They headed back to Garside, separating to their own space for the night. Vlad looked at his slowly deteriorating room, slowly packing up his whole life. The VHC would have it collected the day before they moved, carrier bats were excellent movers and it would be timed to a meeting, so they would be in Transylvania anyway. Zoltan was complaining about having to go on a boat, somehow a stuffed toy with sawdust could feel nauseous. "I'll pick you up at the other end, and take you home myself Zoltan. Then you won't ever have to move homes again, I'm the Chosen One until death." "Very well master Vlad, I will only complain on the day of moving." "I'll hold you to it."

The next night Vlad finally went to face Bertrands library, blinking away tears of guilt as he boxed the books. The Count turned up part way through to complain about his betrothal again, and Vlad didn't have the energy to argue back, just continued packing up with his back to his father. "When are you doing to realise this is nonsense? What's it going to take to get you to stop this suicide mission? I'll promise to never marry either of you off again!" If his father was the type to be believed, that would have been ideal. But his father was a liar, and if he came right out and accepted that, it was as good as admitting they had done it all to avoid that. So he didn't turn around, didn't answer his father and eventually the vampire left. Closing the last box up and putting it with the others in a pile, Vlad sighed to himself and scrubbed tears from his face.

"What's got your fangs in a twist? Dad?" Ingrid didn't take well to being ignored, but Vlad felt too choked up to answer when she asked why he was radiating power and emotions. "Bertrand?" That set him off, a sob thick in his throat as tears rolled down his face. The table he was gripping tightly warped and cracked beneath his fingers, and Ingrid pulled him off it before he accidentally or intentionally staked himself. He didn't think about what he was doing, just clutched at Ingrid and cried, pent up guilt pouring out of him. Ingrid froze in his arms, but she didn't push him off, let him lose the powerful knot in his chest. Managing to pull himself together, Vlad loosened his grip and stepped back. Wiping at his face, Vlad turned away from Ingrid. "Sorry, I don't know what that was. Feel free to run away screaming or threaten me with sunlight." She was silent for a minute, wiping the tears off her dress with a blank look on her face.

"Forget about it, you look like you needed it. And by forget about it I literally mean never mention it again." "I can do that. Thanks." "That's not never mentioning it again." "Sorry." Ingrid reached a hand out and squeezed his shoulder. "Come on, I'll even help." And she did, Vlad had to pinch himself to check he wasn't dreaming some kind of alternate reality as Ingrid helped him put Bertrands clothes into his trunks. "Keeping that?" Vlad was holding the bone Bertrand had worn on a necklace, clenching his fist around it. "Yeah, it can go in my mementos box." "You have one of those?" It wasn't a total secret now then. "Yeah. Patch from Stokely Grammar, picture of me and Robin, that little doll Chloe gave me for luck at my blood test. Now this, to remind me not to let emotions cloud judgement." "Should be easy for you breather boy, the most emotional vampire alive." Pulling the necklace over his head, Vlad nodded. "That's why I need a reminder."

-YD-

 **Is it bad I'm already writing the next chapter in my head and have every intention to start it tonight? Oh well. Enjoy!**


	6. Dreams

**Not my characters.**

 **At this rate I'm going to have finished this before I start working on my other stories... And this is not even a little bit near finished.**

 **On we go!**

-YD-

This all felt like a perfect dream, the girl in his arms kissing him like she would never stop. Cool hands slid under his shirt, tracing over his back and sides before pushing the fabric up and off to map his chest. Returning the favour, Vlad kissed the newly revealed skin before she tugged him back up to her lips, kissing him deeply and pulling him impossibly close to her body. "Vlad, please." whimpered against his lips had Vlad moving to kiss her neck, nipping and sucking his way down. "Vlad" his name fell from her mouth again and again.

"VLAD!" He bolted upright, or would have if his coffin hadn't got in the way. Rubbing his sore head, Vlad pushed the lid open. "Ow. What?" "For one, you need to get up for the moving bats. And two, you were making weird noises. What in the name of garlic were you dreaming about?" Vlad, not even under torture by sunlight, would never admit who it was. "Don't remember, must have knocked it out of myself. You could at least open the coffin if you're going to wake me like that." "You're the idiot with a locking coffin." Realising he couldn't get up in front of her without embarrassing himself, Vlad waited for Ingrid to turn away before climbing out of the coffin. Keeping his lower body hidden by opening his wardrobe door, Vlad pulled out the last of his clothes to wear. "Unless you're planning to watch me change, mind giving me a minute?" Ingrid rolled her eyes but left him alone, and Vlad sighed in relief as the pressure of his jeans was lost.

Shuddering to himself, Vlad thought hard about his father until the problem went away before dressing again. Folding the clothes he had just taken off, he shoved them in a bag and pulled on the Council robes. "Goodbye Garside." Shoving on his Crown, Vlad went to pack up the last of his soya bottles and stood outside waiting for the carrier bats. A team of ten muscular vampires, each in jet black robes with VHC printed on the front and back, landed in the courtyard. "You're the Grand High Vampire yes?" Vlad nodded, inviting them in and clutching the stake in his pocket. "Boxes are in the basement, there's a couple of bottles of blood if you need a drink before you head off." "Thank you Your Grandness." Vlad flitted up to Ingrid's room, knocking to check she was decent before he enter... Went in. "What?" "Making sure you have everything in the basement ready." Ingrid opened the door, fully dressed and made up, nightsbane perfume floating through the air around her.

"Yeah, I was packed before you remember?" "Well I'm going to say bye to dad, then I'm leaving with them, I gotta pick up Zoltan." Ingrid reached behind her door, picking up her own bag and casting one last look around the room. "Lets go." Holding out his arm, the last time they needed to "perform" for their father in this before moving out, Ingrid took it and they flitted down to the throne room. "What do you two want?" "Came to say goodbye. We're leaving." "Very well. Good riddance." Vlad didn't want to leave things this way, but his father wasn't giving him much choice. Ingrid gave him no choice either when she kissed him, and he had to fight a squeal of surprise and let instinct respond. Still in shock when she pulled away, Vlad was saved the trouble of answering when Ingrid ended on "we'll send you an invite to the wedding" and dragged Vlad away. "What the blood and garlic was that?" "He wanted to leave on a sour note, no better way. First thing I'm doing when I get to Transylvania is brushing my fangs, and then hopefully hypnotize myself into forgetting this ever happened."

Schooling his face back to neutral as they reached the basement, the team were each piling boxes to take them with. "We appreciated the meal, thank you again Grand High Vampire." "No trouble, you're making my unlife a whole lot easier. We're following you, and have to make a quick stop at the ferry port in Transylvania." "Of course. Ready when you are sir." Ingrid nodded to say she was ready, so Vlad nodded at the team. The boxes and vampires vanished, replaced by a dozen bats that each rose to the night sky. They stopped at the port, and Vlad simply had to flash his Council ID to have the night staff (vampires of course) tripping over their fangs to help him. Checking no humans were nearby, Vlad pulled open the box he knew Zoltan was in. "Hello Master Vlad." "Hey Zoltan, I gotta put the lid back on but once we get there you can free wheel to your sawdusts content." "Very well." Touching the box as he shifted, he could feel the added weight but their new home wasn't far and he waited for the invite to go in.

"So Bouderon's stuff is cleared?" "Completely, his cousin collected everything. Where would you like your things?" "Master crypt or bedroom, whichever is bigger." They could separate their things and space when nobody was around to notice. "As you wish." The boxes were piled neatly, and each member of the team bid them both a good night before leaving. "Still can't believe you said we would come a night early and unpack for ourselves." "Ingrid, if we had let them unpack for us, we would have had to do it again anyway as it would have all been in one room." Flitting around to get a quick feel for the place, he called out to Ingrid to come choose her coffin when he found the delivery he requested. "Why do they think we wanted four singles instead of two?" Feeling a little guilty for the lie he had made, Vlad elaborated. "Two guest coffins, obviously. Then I said we needed two for us to have a single each, as when I was working on important council business or you were in a mood, we needed our own space to sleep."

Ingrid punched his arm for the comment, but agreed it was a believable excuse at least. "So the new double is for 'our' room, you can have your pick of the singles. A coffin is a coffin to me." Ingrid quickly selected the black and purple one, some recess of his mind acknowledging Ingrid preferred purple over everything except black. "Mind helping me shift this one up? I can lift it, just can't see where I'm going too." The double coffin was set in the centre of the master bedroom, easily twice the size of the master crypt. "You taking the master crypt?" "Obviously." Vlad started unpacking books, ones he read more often to go in the library but a good selection in the bookcases here. "Council isn't until tomorrow, we can do this tonight and then be rested and ready tomorrow." Ingrid shrugged and tossed a few dresses and her spare cape in the wardrobe, hanging next to his leather jacket, stealth cape and a few t-shirts and jeans that didn't really fit him anymore - he had finally started growing a little since he turned eighteen a month ago.

As he worked through the books, Ingrid made good on her promise to clean her fangs, the slightly minty scent of fangpaste in the air when she came back. Finally remembering Zoltan, Vlad released his stuffed hound. "Home sweet home Zoltan!" "Indeed Master Vlad. If you'll excuse me, I think I'll take myself on a tour." "Go right ahead, I have a lot of unpacking to do." Zoltan wheeled himself off, so Vlad tossed the box he was shipped in on the pile of firewood in the main dining room and went back to shifting weapons and gear into the new training room. Unrolling the meditation mat in one corner, he hung the weapons the same way Bertrand would have, guilt still there but he felt a little less crippled since Ingrid had let him cry it out. Not that he could say that, Ingrid had sworn him to never repeat it again. Conditioning equipment went along the other wall, heavy punching bag suspended on a hook already in the ceiling. A few books specifically on training went on a table, and Vlad decided that would do.

Back up in the main room, Vlad chose the nearest room to it as his - it had no windows, and a decent amount of space for Vlad to work out in his room if he wanted to. Lugging a coffin there, he levitated the other two to guest crypts and rushed through unpacking his actual bedroom. Next on his list was to fill the library, or the two empty bookcases that weren't full of VHC issue books. Including the one on zoning Bertrand had found and taught him from. Ingrid found him in there, looking at the expansive collection and the flickering candles at carefully measured intervals along the walls. "How long until dad notices you took the blood mirror?" "A while, it's not like he needs it. Which reminds me, it needs a room. Any small spots in the crypt you think will do it?" Ingrid nodded, so they carefully shifted it to it's new home, the gargoyles blinking in acceptance as it was settled. If he pressed a hand to the glass, he could still feel the presence of Elisabetta in there, like her life energy was detectable. "Can the zoning wear off?" "Not as far as Bertrand could work out, but even if it did she couldn't cross the lake to get out, and the gargoyles are guardians, they won't let her out without one of us opening the vortex."

Feeling the prickle on his skin of the impending sunrise, Vlad bid Ingrid good day and went to change for sleep. Settling in his new coffin, he shook the residual confusion of Ingrid kissing him out of his mind and hoped no more dreams occurred as he closed his eyes. Sleep was blissfully absent of dreams, and he rose feeling mostly back to himself, in spite of the unfamiliar surroundings. Taking his soya bottles down to the kitchen, Vlad found it already stocked and a whole shelf unit full of bottled blood. "Woke up really confused for about three seconds, then had a little celebration that I don't live with Count Sulk-ula. How about you?" Looking up as Ingrid entered the room, Vlad shrugged. "Its a little strange, mostly I'm just glad to be settled somewhere at last. Stokely wasn't long enough, Garside was a place to hide and too much happened for it to feel like home. I can't change being the chosen one, so this is home unless I choose to leave. Makes a change to have a choice in my life."

"I wasn't expecting an essay, but fair enough. Nice stockpile we have here." "Need to find the blood cellar, check the stock pile and make an order. Since we will be expected to host a party of some kind to celebrate moving in, especially as I'm the first Grand High Vampire to move a betrothed in at the start, all my predecessors were either bound or got betrothed later. We just keep breaking convention here." "Oh joy, another dance. We are not inviting dad." "Agreed, but if he turns up I won't turn him away. Not worth the hassle." Ingrid sighed, draining her goblet and indicating his watch. "Right, I'll go change." Finishing his own goblet, Vlad flitted up to his room and pulled on his council robes and crown. Their new castle was only a ten minute fly from the VHC building - far enough to be their own space, close enough to be a fast commute. So when the door knocked, Vlad was surprised. What couldn't wait another twenty minutes for him to be at Council? Ingrid shrugged as she joined him at the front door, both holding stakes in hand just in case.

He opened it to find Roqueloire, who looked alert as ever. "Apologies for disturbing you Your Grandness, but I believe you requested to be informed the minute we had the Lecushka brothers in custody. Well, we have them." "Well, good timing, I'm just about ready to leave. Lets fly." Ingrid stopped just long enough to close the doors behind them, then she was flying alongside them as they headed to the VHC building. Roque stopped Vlad just long enough to hand him his staff, making him feel even less intimidating than usual as they went to the cells. One brother was in each cell next to each other, two security guards either side of them. Each one bowed to Vlad, which he wasn't sure he would ever get used to. "Both searched for weapons?" "Of course. Forgive my boldness, but should the female be here?" "My future bloodwife is by my side when I say so. That was your first and last warning." "Of course. My apologies sir."

Vlad wanted Ingrid to be seen in her own stride, which meant pulling her from the sidelines females were often pushed to and letting everyone see she was strong and not to be trifled with. As he wouldn't always be there to push her forwards at his side, their 'engagement' was not a permanent arrangement. Ingrid surprised him again, making the other vampires look away as she wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned up close to his face. When nobody was looking, her mouth moved next to his ear. "Pick one, then ask Roque to get the others in the trial room." Nodding gratefully as she stepped back with a smirk, Vlad didn't see much difference in the two. "Roque, could you ensure the other council members are ready for the trial room? I would hate for either of them to try and accuse me of interrogating them unfairly, a room full of witnesses should stop that." "At once sir." Gesturing to the two guards on one cell, he watched as they fang cuffed the first brother.

The prisoner was dragged ahead of he and Ingrid, effectively distracting anyone from noticing the slightly dumbfounded expression on his face, still a little thrown by Ingrid using fake physical intimacy to either irritate or distract others. The dance had been different, that was for a whole room, not one or two people. It was intelligent use of their contracted union though, he had to give her that. Taking his seat in the throne at the front, he gestured for Ingrid to take the front seat nearest him. The other members of the council sat then, Roque standing at his side as his bodyguard. The brother was unrepentant of his actions, stating that the cease fire was a joke and he wanted to leave a trail of destructive, unknowing half vampires as a plague on humanity. Offered the chance to give up the names of the women he had impregnated, he refused. The second brother was brought in just in time to see Vlad lazily dust him from his chair.

"Make a full confession and you may escape the fate of your brother." This was clearly the lesser of the two, the beta to an alpha of sorts. He coughed up a list of every breather woman he could remember, over 30 on four continents, and the locations of the clans blood mirror. Vlad organised one team to collect it, another to start tracking down the women named. "We need the exact dates of birth, to know which, if any, are past sixteen as they will be the urgent cases. The younger ones, we can put together a plan with the Slayers Guild on how to deal with those families." "What of the Lecushka land and property?" "Leave it for now. Dimidius can choose humanity right? So until we know how many potential heirs there may or may not be, it's better left untouched." Sending the second brother to a UV cage, five years for each child until the new dimidius laws were crafted, Vlad adjourned the trial. "Thank you gentlemen, and Ingrid of course. Unless there is anything urgent, I suggest we reconvene next week and consider how best to approach the Slayers Guild." A quiet, but unanimous murmur of agreement was their reply, so Vlad dismissed them.

Scrubbing a hand over his face, Vlad looked to Ingrid. "I need a drink. Thirty kids, and that's just the ones he remembered. We'll have to give the guild his blood, as a DNA reference for any random halflings that get discovered." Handing off the staff to Roque, Vlad was eager to return to his new home for a large glass of soya and to get out of his official garb. The short commute was now his new favourite thing about this castle as they flew back home together, and Vlad greeted Zoltan on his way to the kitchen. "You made it pretty clear you consider the scattered dimidius kids eligible to lead the Lecushka clan, which they aren't." "They will be. There are no others alive other than the one in the UV cage, and lets face it, he won't survive long. Think of this as a test case. Ironic that their plan to invade humanity might have ended up as a key point in the beginnings of unity." Ingrid merely shook her head, swilling the blood in her glass around. "Look, I'm not saying dimdius should be as simple as any other child, it will need rules and regulations and monitoring. But this sins of the father, sins of the family thing is ridiculous. Dad has a thing for breather women, if he had gotten one pregnant we would both be outcasts, banished from the clan."

Ingrid still didn't look totally convinced, so Vlad tried a different tack. "Then there's Wolfie, he's a good kid, no way he deserves the laws in place against his kind because mum ditched her family for a werewolf." Ingrid had a soft spot for their half brother, even if she denied it. This finally swayed her enough to stop questioning his decisions and thoughts on future law changes. Having finished his large glass of soya, Vlad stripped off his robes and dumped them near the washer - they were not getting a domestic any time soon, he wanted this to be his haven as best it could. Ingrid looked pointedly at his midriff, confusing Vlad until he looked himself and saw his t-shirt hiked up to his chest still. "Sorry" he pulled the fabric back down, then tossed the crown onto a hook usually designed for kitchenware and poured himself another glass.

"Only just left England and I already have to go back soon. The Slayers Guild are going to love this." "Oh yes, as much as they would all love twin puncture marks in their throat." Finding himself smiling in spite of his overtaxed mind at Ingrid's usual sarcasm, Vlad drained the second goblet, his stomach feeling full enough now. "Much better. Its a little early, but I'm going to hit my coffin unless there's anything else you want to talk about?" Ingrid replied in the negative, so Vlad bid her good day and headed up to the towers. His coffin looked tiny and stifling for some reason, so after he changed into clothes that didn't smell like vamp dust, he took a few hesitant steps into "their" room. It felt strange to be in here, even alone but the huge coffin looked infinitely more inviting, and Vlad indulged in a good stretch to test out just how roomy it was before he settled in to sleep.

It turned out this maybe wasn't his best idea, as his dreams filled his slumbering mind with images unbidden of the girl laying next to him. The coffins extra room went largely ignored, until she used it to roll their bodies so she was on top of him, their lips meeting as she closed the distance, hands trailing down his bare chest to the waistband of his jeans, unbuttoning them and slowly tugging the zipper loose before moving to grasp his erection, hips arching into a firm, cool grip. Vlad jerked awake as his conscience caught up with him, though it wasn't enough to stop him pushing a hand down into his underwear, biting his lip as he stroked himself until he shuddered in release. Shaky as he ditched the sticky shorts in exchange for clean ones, Vlad knew he really needed to burn some physical desires off somewhere. Because Ingrid was the only female he saw on a regular basis, it kind of made sense that would be easiest for his brain to substitute, but that didn't make it acceptable to be waking up hard after dreaming of Ingrid touching him. In short, Vlad knew he needed to get laid sometime, and soon.

-YD-

 **This is nowhere near finished, but I'm still full of excitement for it!**


	7. Awkward

**Not my characters.**

 **Looking in my doc manager, the chapters of this get longer every time.**

 **That's not really relevant, but if you thought you were imagining it, you're not.**

 **On we go!**

-YD-

Vlad spent most of the night intentionally avoiding Ingrid, though as he spent most of that time in the training room, she probably didn't notice. He couldn't help jumping slightly when she brushed past him in the kitchen, making her look at him strangely but she didn't comment on it. "So, blood cellar today?" Vlad nodded, hunting out a quill and paper and ink in a study before heading down to the lower levels of the castle. The blood cellar was enormous, ridiculously so. "Blood and garlic, this is a big stash." There were rows and shelves along walls twelve feet long, and crates stacked against the back wall three deep and five high. Coughing slightly on the dust, Vlad quickly scanned through the boxes to check they were full, and full of what they said was on the box. "Dad would go mad for this, Chataeu Peasant '42 galore." Scribbling it down as a kind of inventory, Vlad went through the rest of the boxes.

"Now the loose bottles. Garlic, this could take a while." "And you barely even touch this stuff." "Yeah, I'll have to order soya in, and check nobody poisons it." Ingrid shrugged and hmm-ed to herself, studying a random bottle. "Looks like these are all pre 20th century, the other side must be newer vintages. Makes sense, half to drink and half to age, then crates of special stuff." Vlad checked the other side before agreeing and noting it down. "A robust Archduke. Hints of nutty flavours. Sweet Ladies, nutmeg and paprika notes. That's disgusting." Cringing as he reshelved the bottle, Vlad stuck the list to the wall by the door. "I'm going to go order soya, then you can join me in the library. Time to start on dimidius research." "Do I have to?" "Only if you want to be known to actually contribute, I'm trying to help you reach your own potential, your own status. You won't always be linked to me this way, and you'll make a great show of what women can do given the chance."

Playing on Ingrid's desire for power and status worked, she agreed and headed to the library ahead of him. Sending out a carrier raven to order his soya, Vlad went along to the room of books. "There isn't even that much on them, and half of it is biased rubbish." "I know, but if I'm even a little unprepared Morgan will bribe Vaskow, and then it'll only take one more member to overrule changes to the laws. I just need basic facts, any differences to a normal adolescent vampire other than their eighteenth birthday, that sort of thing. The rest will have to be a compromise made in meetings." They worked in near silence for an hour, then Ingrid dropped a sheet of notes in front of him, with a note attached saying he had better credit her in his report or she would put garlic in his soya blood. "Coffin time." Checking his watch, Vlad realised she was right and piled the research together so he could write his report tomorrow night.

After another haunting and arousing dream, Vlad redoubled his mental note to find a place to vent his sexual frustration before Ingrid noticed he was acting strangely. Rising early, Vlad tried to think. He was questioning the morality of it even as he dressed, but it made better sense than dreaming about Ingrid, and it would only be a one time thing. Leaving a message with Zoltan so Ingrid would know he hadn't spontaneously evaporated, Vlad set off. Supposing he had Transylvania to thank for such a thriving nightlife, Vlad felt distinctly out of place in the nightclub but he had no other ideas. The pheromones of vampirism helped, and as he sipped a glass of water Vlad noticed multiple people, male and female, giving him unsubtle looks. Flattening his hair nervously, he wondered why this was ever a good idea in his mind. "You look nervous? First time out?" Turning, Vlad found the voice belonged to a tall, dark haired girl. Sipping the water for his dry mouth, Vlad nodded.

"Yeah. I mean, recently single from my long term girlfriend. Not really sure how this goes but my friend dragged me out then left me, I can't find him anywhere." It was a terrible lie, but Vlad didn't want to seem like a total loner. Though he supposed he was fairly recently separated from Erin, he was not technically single. "I'm Hayley, you?" "Vlad." "A local? Explains the pale thing you have going on." That, and he was undead but that didn't need to come up. "Yeah, I was born a few towns over." Hayley dragged Vlad to meet her friends, introducing him to multiple breathers at varying stages of intoxication. "This is Vlad, he's new to freedom and his friend left him!" One very drunk girl threw an arm around him and aww-ed, then said he felt cold. "Hayley, he needs warming up!"

Vlad didn't have time to wonder what that meant before warm lips touched his, old responsive instincts for Erin kicking up. Floundering under the brazen girls attention, he made himself breathe heavily when she let him go, pretending his lungs worked. "Your girlfriend doesn't know what she gave up, wanna get out of here?" Vlad could only nod dumbly, letting the girl take him to her home nearby. If she noticed he was cold all over as she stripped his clothes away, she didn't mention it. Vlad sighed in relief that she had 'protection', he clearly hadn't thought this through enough. Aiming to distract her enough she wouldn't notice he didn't have a heartbeat, Vlad kept on kissing and touching, moving so she couldn't pay attention to anything at once. Condoms clearly helped her not notice he really was cold everywhere, or her body was hot enough in contrast that it wasn't apparent.

Guilt was overriding any kind of satisfaction as she fell asleep, giving him chance to dress and escape. Flying back to his castle, Vlad aimed straight for his bathroom but didn't manage to escape Ingrid. "You reek of alcohol, breathers and guilt. Do I even want to know?" "I went out. Problem?" "You either went hunting or prowling, but you don't bite breathers so I doubt it was hunting. You had sex with a breather?" Scowling at his bedroom door where she couldn't see his face, Vlad shrugged. "I needed to let off some steam, I'm an eighteen year old boy not a monk." He didn't wait for an answer, slamming his door shut so hard the walls rattled as he tore his clothes off and scrubbed himself clean. Even after he had washed his body twice, Vlad still felt dirty about what he had done. Erin had been different, she had known he was a vampire from the start. This girl had taken home a total stranger, he could have been anyone, though that had been his aim he tasted bitter regret now. Scrubbing a brush over his fangs until he couldn't taste alcohol or lip balm or human, Vlad spat out the fangpaste foam and rinsed his mouth.

"A breather? Really? Is that why you want to change the laws, so you can drop kids everywhere?" Ingrid clearly wouldn't let the matter drop, loitering in the kitchen waiting for him. "Don't be ridiculous!" Keeping his back turned towards her, Vlad poured out a goblet of soya. "Then what?" "The dimidius laws need changing. I wholeheartedly regret what I did tonight. That's all there is to it." "Obviously not. I want to know if you'll regularly be disappearing off to... Parts unknown." "What does it matter? We aren't actually a couple, you might be looking for someone to fall for but I can't!" Trying to reign in his anger before the goblet he was holding shattered, Vlad turned to leave but found his way blocked by Ingrid. Given his dreams, Vlad didn't think this was a good situation to be in. "What's got your fangs in a twist? This damn engagement farce was your idea!" The glass in his hand broke, soya blood and fragments spilling to the ground. "It still is, but I'm not going to stay alone in my coffin for five years, and you're the one who got all bent out of shape over me waving at another vampire! So unless you have a better idea, leave it!"

Ingrid looked at him searchingly, but Vlad could feel the dreams stirring in the back of his mind and pushed past her before his body could betray him, no matter what his mind was screaming. The training room saw a great deal of anger and frustration, burning the emotions up so he could think straight. His palm was healing from the glass shards he had pulled out as he called time on himself, leaning his head against the wall. He didn't actually want Ingrid, Vlad was sure of that. But anonymous encounters with humans... That wasn't him. Short of finding a vampiress he could trust with this situation, who was willing to have a no strings deal, Vlad didn't know what to do. And telling Ingrid what was pushing him to rash decisions was out of the question, it wasn't what it would seem and Ingrid would take it the wrong way.

Energy expended in more ways than one, Vlad fell into his coffin and closed the lid. He could write the report tomorrow. Though when he woke, aroused and annoyed at himself as his dreams proved everything last night had been for nought, Vlad felt more like fighting than writing. He 'relieved' himself in the shower, still feeling soiled and guilty as he dressed. Ingrid was nowhere to be seen, but given his attitude last night Vlad didn't blame her for avoiding him. Setting himself up in the library with a fresh goblet of blood, Vlad started on his report. It was easy to ignore the thoughts in his mind until he needed Ingrid's notes, but Vlad didn't let himself hesitate as he added her name to the report. Now he had to find her, he needed her signature. Stepping down to her crypt, he knocked on the door. "Go away!" "I need your signature, you can ignore me after two seconds writing." Ingrid finally opened the door, practically tearing the report and pen from his hands, scratching a signature on the line beneath her name. "Now go away."

He hadn't even finished turning away before she slammed the door behind him, leaving him sighing with sadness. Over four months into this charade, Vlad had started to hope they were making steps towards repairing their relationship, that this would truly leave them close as brother and sister when all was said and done. Instead, he had let a few weird dreams alienate the only true ally he had in the sea of his life. Just like he had let anger and jealousy cloud his view when it came to believing Bertrand. Yet again, he was letting his emotions interfere, he was letting Bertrand down all over again. If Vlad had a reflection, he would hate what he saw in the mirror. Instead, the loathing was internalized, swallowed down as he dropped the report off in his study and dragged a crate of blood to the living room. Snapping his fingers to light the fire, Vlad had a sense of dejavu as he stared into the flames and drank the human blood. The thing with drinking bottled vintage, it was similar to breathers and alcohol, overindulgence left one feeling 'drunk', fuzzy brained and a little sleepy.

"Master Vlad?" Turning bleary eyes to Zoltan, Vlad dropped the empty bottle, his second. "Hey Zoltan." "Whatever is the matter? You are not one to indulge." "Trying to quiet my mind. Its kind of working." Zoltan wheeled closer, nudging at Vlad's shoulder with his furry head. Reaching up to pet the fuzzy hound, Vlad smiled slightly as Zoltan all but purred in contentment. "Can I help?" "Not really, I gotta deal with this myself. After I sleep this off." "Of course. You know where I am if you wish to talk." Zoltan wheeled himself to his basket, tipping himself off his wheel base and yawning. "I could smell that in the crypt, are you blood-drunk?" Staggering to his feet, Vlad shrugged at Ingrid and waved a hand in mid air. "Tipsy I may be, I am certainly not drunk." The room was only spinning a little bit, so Vlad didn't think he was too bad. "Whatever." Ingrid turned and left, leaving Vlad feel more confused than before as he ambled to his room. The coffin was welcoming as he dropped into it, a hazy sleep wonderfully dream free taking him through to the next night. His head ached somewhat, and the acrid taste in his mouth reminded him the previous night wasn't a dream.

Brushing his fangs until the remnants of flavour went away, Vlad rubbed still tired eyes and went in search of the function room, where any event held at their castle would centre around. It was a little dusty and there were cobwebs, but that was standard vampire decor. Tables lined two walls, where drinks and food would be laid out. A throne sat at one end, next to a slightly raised dais where a band would be. The rest of the cavernous room was a dance floor, though there were stacks of chairs around for conversation groups to branch off into seated debates or networking. All in all, the room was extravagantly enormous, and Vlad was already dreading the social events he had to host. Especially given Ingrid currently had no patience for his existence, which would only make things more awkward.

A knock at the door had Vlad heading down to answer it, standard stake in hand but it was merely his delivery of soya crates. "Charged to the Grand High Vampires allowance at the VHC naturally, thank you for choosing Life Matters Your Grandness." Levitating the crates himself so he didn't have to invite any of them in, Vlad thanked them politely and drifted them down to the cellar, closing his front door securely again. Ingrid was in there, but when she saw him she made to leave. Holding his arm out in her way, Vlad begged her to wait. "Ingrid, I'm sorry. I was in a bad mood, that wasn't your fault." Well, it wasn't her fault he had those dreams at least. "And I shouldn't have been getting drunk. I don't want us to live like strangers here, it won't happen again." His sister regarded him coolly, silence hanging in the air like the soy crates still hovering next to him.

"Are you still going to go out playing with breathers?" Vlad shrugged. "I doubt it, but I won't make a promise I'm not certain I can keep. Very unlikely though, too much baggage." "And against your moral code as a breather lover to ditch out." "That too. Are we okay now?" "For now." Figuring that was as good as he was going to get from Ingrid, he dropped his arm to let her pass. Finally stacking his soy to one side, Vlad realised he should go launder his robes for Council in a few days. And generally do laundry, but his robes were the priority. Leaning against the wall waiting for the washing machine to finish, Vlad looked up to see Ingrid standing there. "Something wrong? Do I have blood on my face or something?" Ingrid shook her head, just looking around the room for a few minutes. The strange silence was broken by Vlad's slayer- issue mobile, specifically to stay in touch with Jonno and the guild from Transylvania. "Jonno?" "Hey Vlad, you busy?" Looking at Ingrid, who still hadn't spoken, Vlad shook his head before realising Jonno couldn't see him.

"Not busy, no." Ingrid left then, and Jonno had to repeat his name several times to get his attention back. "Sorry, didn't sleep well. What's up?" "We have a pregnant slayer." "Congratulations?" "She said it's a vampire that fathered it. We are kind of at a loss for what to do." "Brilliant!" "Was that sarcasm?" Feeling his mood lift slightly now it was just work on his mind, Vlad hastened to answer. "No, no. Its just, the timing couldn't be better. Look, she's going to be fine. I need to wait til this weeks VHC meeting, but then I'm going to be setting up a meeting with you guys about something similar. I'll be in touch." "So, we don't need to feed her blood or anything?" "Not at all, honestly, don't worry." "Alright, I'll see you soon I guess. Bye Vlad." "Bye Jonno." He couldn't tell the VHC yet, but Vlad felt like he had just been handed a potential key in a true truce between the guild and vampires.

Ingrid was back to normal behaviour the next time he saw her, and while his dreams didn't abate, Vlad made a conscious effort to keep his behaviour even. Arriving at the VHC early, Vlad made copies of his report and dropped it in each persons spot at the table. Ingrid turned up just before everyone else, standing next to him stiffly as the others turned up. Guiding everyone to look through the report, they slowly - with many back and forth arguments - came to an agreement on what to go to the slayers guild with. "I'll deliver this myself, enforce that the Council is still fully committed" he stressed the word fully "to the peace. If there's nothing else, we are done for this week." "Actually your Grandness, there is one thing." Biting back a sigh, Vlad gestured for Vaskow to speak. "You have yet to even start planning your crypt warming party." "We have had more pressing matters, like the Lekuscha brothers. However, since you seem so eager to volunteer, you can compile the invite list for Ingrid to review, and prepare a list of top caterers and musicians. Present it by the next meeting, and when I'm done with the Slayers Guild, we can work on setting a date." Vaskow scowled, but even he wasn't dim enough to argue with a direct order from the GHV. "Of course sir."

Nobody else dared bring up extra business, lest they be landed with such tasks themselves and the meeting quickly adjourned. "Why me?" "You know the procedure, and are much more likely to know if there is anyone I should or shouldn't be inviting into our home. And I want to ensure they know you are involved in my decisions." That seemed to pacify Ingrid, so as Vlad rolled up the information for the Slayers, he felt a little less stressed about it all and headed to their home with a smile. "Don't get too comfortable, out of council clothes and on to dancing practice." "What for?" "You were barely passable in a room full of shocked dust brains only a day after practice. That was a month and a half ago, you need to keep practicing." Sighing internally, Vlad knew it was pointless arguing against Ingrid when she had made a decision, and he was trying not to drive a wedge between them. "Alright. Ballroom?" Ingrid nodded and flitted off, leaving Vlad to hang up his council robes and crown before following her.

Standing this close to Ingrid had never been less than awkward before, but it was beginning to be for a whole different reason. "First, redo the steps you learned before." Vlad forced his senses lower, not inhaling Ingrid's perfume or letting his eyes stray beyond a point on the wall behind her. "Not bad, but you're going too slow. Do it again." The next run was apparently an improvement, so Ingrid didn't make him do it over. "I know this is awkward, but lose the slayer in fangs range face." Vlad almost broke and told her why it was awkward then, but squared himself up and schooled his face to neutral instead. Vlad almost sighed in relief when Ingrid took a few steps back, letting him breathe a little easier even if she was holding his hand still. "Isn't this a courting dance? A little obsolete for us." "Its good practice, you're still not all that graceful." The downside of this particular dance was Vlad had to keep eye contact with Ingrid, terrified she could see through his eyes to the bizarre dreams he had, the desires he reviled and didn't understand or want to feel.

Trying to distract himself from her face, Vlad tried to practice the spins slowly, breaking their eye contact. Until he had to spin her back into his body, her face mere inches from his and sanity disappearing under the dreams twisting his mind into knots. The last of his self control pulled him away, dropping Ingrid's hand and shaking his head to clear it. "What's with you?" "I don't know. I think I need to go meditate, it's been a while." He was lying, it was only last night he had meditated last but Vlad needed to center himself, calm his mind. Ingrid didn't have time to answer before Vlad bolted from the room, not stopping until he was in the training room. He didn't want Ingrid, he just needed proper physical contact. Even as his brain tried to stay rational, he was remembering that having sex had not made an iota of difference. "I just need a vampire. That's all." Vlad kept telling himself, hoping he would believe himself before things started getting strange.

-YD-

 **damn, my phone needs charging so I can't start writing the next chapter yet, so much excitement to come!**


	8. Slayers

**Not my characters.**

 **I am 100% certain I am more excited about this story than any reader, but then I never set out to write stuff people would actually read, I was more surprised than anyone when my stuff started getting followed and favourited and reviewed. It started as kind of therapeutic, and became a shameless addiction. No regrets! That being said, I love each and every one of my readers from the bottom of my cold, unbeating heart.**

 **On we go!**

-YD-

Whatever Ingrid thought of his mini freak out in the ballroom, he didn't know. She didn't seek him out while he was 'meditating' - he was sat cross legged on the meditation mat, but about as far away from a relaxed mental state as it was possible to be when he wasn't in fear for his life. Clumsy as he was not used to this "texting" business, Vlad sent a request to Jonno to set up a meeting with the chairs of the Slayers Guild and the pregnant girl, reminding him to take their time difference into account. Giving up on meditating, Vlad moved on to physical training, hoping if he wore himself out enough he wouldn't have 'the' dreams. Collapsing into his coffin as the sun rose, his stomach rumbled but Vlad refused to move, closing his eyes and picturing deep darkness. The hunger traded one disturbing dream for another, his mind full of faceless girls who begged him to bite them, letting them sink his fangs deep into their necks until warm blood flooded his mouth. Waking up a mixture of sickened, aroused and ravenous, Vlad didn't feel good at all as he climbed from his coffin.

Jonno had answered by now, the following night chosen for their meeting. Which meant he now had to go talk to Ingrid, explain the situation so she could come with him. Firstly, he needed blood. Not bothering with the pretense of a glass, Vlad took long pulls on the soya bottle until it was empty and his stomach felt uncomfortably full. Tossing the empty through the special chute where it joined a recycling pile or something, he wasn't totally sure, Vlad tried to plan his night out. Top of the list was putting Zoltan back on his base so the wolf could wheel himself around. "Much appreciated Master Vlad. And how are you this evening?" "Oh you know, governing a race that wants to tear the world apart but doesn't consider the repercussions. Same old." "Same old indeed." Zoltan wheeled himself off, apparently he had not yet explored the whole castle and enjoyed roaming about without the Count trying to fry or throw him. Vlad didn't blame him.

Hitting the library for something to do while he waited for Ingrid to surface from her crypt, he leafed through a few books on werewolves, as after the Dimidius law was reformed, he wanted to ensure nothing bad could happen to Wolfie - he was still his little brother even if his father moulted. "You haven't even reformed one law yet, why are you actively looking for more work?" "Because I was chosen for a reason, and the vampire world is going to have to accept that things need to change for them to be led to glory or whatever. The werewolf laws are going to be stricter, I only want to protect any offspring like Wolfie - they didn't choose to be born." Ingrid rarely bothered with greetings, preferring to jump straight into whatever conversation topic struck her. "How are you even going to do that? Wolfie is the first known hybrid." Tapping a pen against the book, that was a good point. "If it comes to it, I'll take Wolfie in here and watch him grow. We already know his genes are at least predominant in werewolf characteristics as a child, he's four and the size of a ten year old, and turns into a dog in moonlight."

"Careful. If he's here he's going to notice we aren't exactly conventional in our 'betrothal'." "I know. But I don't think Wolfie will care, he wanted to stay with us but mum took him away. I would tell him he had a place here either way, he's family." Vlad did notice Ingrid wasn't making any other argument against Wolfie, proving again she had a soft spot for the little half breed. "So long as he's the only one. I mean, Malik, Granny, Olga, Ivan, mum and dad are all family, like hellfire are they living here." "I agree completely. But it's all speculation at the minute, for now Wolfie isn't on anyone's radar but mine. The dimidius is more pressing. Which reminds me, we are visiting the guild tomorrow night." "Am I now?" Rolling his eyes, Vlad nodded. "Yes. You want credit for the project, you see it through. Plus your general ability to make almost any male agree with you is helpful, I don't think Jonno fancies me." Ingrid grimaced at the reminder but nodded. "Fine."

"We also have a first hand case study, so the Slayers can see dimidius pregnancies aren't dangerous to the human." "You been playing with breathers again already?" Shuddering inwardly, Vlad shook his head. "One of the Slayers is pregnant, according to Jonno she said a vampire is the father. That's all I know right now, should be interesting to hear that story." Ever a gossip no matter how much she denied it, Vlad could see a spark of interest in Ingrids eyes. It was only now Vlad finally noticed Ingrid hadn't dressed yet, vest top and sleep trousers under a deep red dressing gown. The gown hung open, and the particular design of the sleepwear revealed a thin band of pale skin around Ingrid's middle. As soon as he realised he was looking, Vlad tore his eyes away and went back to his book. If Ingrid noticed, she didn't say a word. "Didn't realise you ever left your room less than full bringer of death mode." "You're the one who refuses to get staff, if this is allowed to be your hideaway then I can damn well put off getting dressed until after I've had breakfast."

"Fair point. I wasn't saying this isn't your home to do what you like in, just stating an observation. Please, continue." Keeping his eyes resolutely on the book, his mind not even slightly interested in the bare skin he had seen at all, Vlad bit the inside of his cheek to stop anything stupid falling from his mouth until Ingrid left. This was getting ridiculous, he did not want Ingrid, it was completely stupid to be haunted by the merest flash of pale, smooth skin on show. Running a hand through his hair in frustration, Vlad realised he had reread the same paragraph three times and couldn't have quoted a word from it if asked. Shoving the books aside, his head fell into his hands on the table and he growled in frustrated irritation, mostly with himself. A quick shower relief session took the edge off, but Vlad knew it would make little difference overall if he didn't get his head on straight and sort out the twisted thoughts in there.

He spent most of the night going over everything they had to take to the Slayers Guild, mostly to stay out of Ingrid's way and keep his mind on the work. The cease fire was priority number one, his work would not fall apart just because his dreams were taking a strange turn. And it was just the dreams. He wasn't noticing things about Ingrid, or thinking about when she had kissed him in front of their father, not at all. Vlad was thinking about Slayers, and werewolves, and dimidius children. Clutching the bottle in his hand tighter, Vlad repeated those words to himself until he had even almost convinced himself. Organising the papers to be ready to go with them tomorrow night, Vlad fell into his coffin and told himself he wouldn't dream of Ingrid today. Naturally, it didn't work and he was already on edge when he got up that evening, hard against his trousers until he hit the shower to ease the tension.

"You sure do shower alot for a race that hardly sweats." "Just want to make sure I don't smell bad when I'm meeting the slayers. I'll need another when we get back, to get the smell of garlic out." Typical Ingrid fashion was an instant conversation, regardless of the fact Vlad was eating when she walked into the kitchen - and stole half his food. The smirk on her perfectly made up face had distracted Vlad long enough to cost him the chance to argue, so he fought to remember what she had been saying instead. "True. At least the cease fire forbids them bearing arms, last thing we need is a stake happy new recruit bouncing around the place." Hmm-ing in agreement as he checked over his pockets and bag, Vlad took a long drink of soya to complete his meal. "Ready when you are." "Are we coming back the same night?" "That's the plan. If not, the guild still collects blood so you can eat without violating the cease-fire." "What a shame." Shaking his head, Vlad pocketed his council ID and S-G phone before shifting to his bat form.

Vlad immediately decided he needed more time in his bat form, things didn't seem nearly as mad and confusing, the moonlight glowing bright enough and every enhanced sound loud enough to make him forget the dreams, tension melting away. Landing outside the guild, they both held up their hands (though Ingrid growled angrily about it) until the Van Helsings called to let them through. Holding up the "Grand High Vampire" ID for the guards to see, they nodded in compliance and lowered their weapons to let them pass. "Come on in." "Hey Jonno." The Draculas stepped through, not breathing too much to speak in the garlic-laden air. "Sorry, but you know how our side of the treaty is that Slayers get to stay prepared - Just in case. We have a more aired out spot for the meeting." In spite of trusting Jonno, and by extension Mina, Vlad felt a little uncomfortable with all the eyes on them.

The room Jonno led them into did indeed smell much less like garlic, and the chairs waiting for Vlad and Ingrid didn't even have complimentary argentalium shackles. "Cosy." Ingrid gave the room a look of distaste, turning an equally unimpressed look to Jonno. "I'll just go tell them you're here. They went to rest, this whole late night meeting and all." "Yeah, sorry but that whole exploding in sunlight problem kind of puts a time limit on when we can come out to play." Mina gave Ingrid a brief glare, but didn't go reaching for a stake. "If we have to leave weapons at the door, the least you can do is put yours away." Vlad checked with his tongue but was sure his were retracted, so he was confused until he looked over at Ingrid. Ignoring the pulse of interest in his mind, Vlad gave his sister an expectant look. "Spoil sport." The next time her mouth opened, the fangs were gone.

Tearing his eyes off Ingrid's mouth before anyone noticed, Vlad sat down in one of the provided seats. Ingrid followed suit, scowling at the door all the same. The chairs of the guild walked in, taking their own seats. "My understanding is we were meeting the Grand High Vampire, why is she here?" "Ingrid is my second in command, and she helped a lot with the report you guys want, to know your pregnant slayer is going to be ok." That shut them up enough to get the meeting underway, and Vlad made sure to present the better news first - ease them in to knowing it was safe. "I am curious to hear, how did this even come about? A slayer willingly sleeping with a vampire?" The slayer in question, a nineteen year old girl named Amy, blushed. "I was in France, we network with Slayers guild's all over the world to maintain the cease fire. They are trialling a new social thing. If you donate a pint of blood to feed the vampire, you get to keep your stake on you but you have to hang out with them. One thing kind of led to another."

"I don't mean to pry, but its important. Who was it?" Even Jonno looked interested as they waited for the girl to answer. "His name was Malik. I don't know his last name." Sharing a look with Ingrid, Vlad dug through his bag for the crumpled newspaper he had retrieves - after burning the first copy. "Was this him?" "Yeah. That's him. Oh." "Why do you even have that Vlad?" "Top of my hit list." Screwing the newspaper back into his bat, Vlad looked at Amy. "He's our brother. So you appear to be carrying our niece or nephew." That seemed to surprise multiple people in the room. "Why did you say the timing wouldn't be better?" "Because I'm about to change the dimidius laws, if this had happened before I took my spot it wouldn't have ended well for anyone under the current laws." "What does it mean for like, raising the baby? I'm not moving to Transylvania." Vlad tried to think on that for a minute. "We are essentially the same as human children before we hit puberty, then things like hypnosis and fireballs start to come in. We can cross that bridge when we come to it."

The next part was the one Vlad dreaded - admitting the Lecushka brothers crimes. "So there could be more?" "Yes. I'm happy to pass on the names, but only if it comes with a promise of safety. Dimdius have the chance to give up their vampire sides, if you stake them before they even have that chance you could be killing innocent people, humans." "Anything we should be looking out for?" Vlad handed Jonno the list of 'symptoms', along with the list of names they had. "If you come across any of them, get their age and location and tell me. Priorities are teenagers between fifteen and eighteen, who will need access to a blood mirror. But any dimidius child needs to come through me, or Ingrid." Any time it looked like the room mostly composed of men would argue, Ingrid only had to lean forwards and drop her voice just a little bit, and everything would suddenly be agreeable. He envied and hated it, especially since it was having an effect on him too. "Alright. So what about Malik?" "He's my problem. He tried to destroy our clan, almost killed all of us. Sorry Amy, I don't think your kid is going to know his father."

"Isn't he the one who tried to bite me?" "Yes. You're welcome by the way." "Excuse me?" The Slayers misunderstood that, but both Vlad and Jonno hastened to point out Ingrid was the one who pulled Malik off him. "I mean, she did it to annoy dad, but she still saved Jonno. Which reminds me, you need to keep this secret. Only for a short while, I have to time the VHC finding out about a slayer carrying a dimidius child just right to keep the balance, keep the peace." Amy nodded, leaving soon after for sleep or whatever pregnant breathers did. "You're serious about this then? Uniting the world of vampires and breathers together?" "Completely. I just need time, but I won't stop until every one is safe." The head of the guild, a heavy set man with healed fang marks on his hand and a claw-like scar down his cheek, shook Vlad's hand then. "Ok. We'll back you. For now." That was still an acceptance, so Vlad nodded in agreement and they took their leave soon after to beat the sunrise. "Well, I think that went well all things considered." Ingrid didn't seem too bothered either way, but then she wasn't an open book like he tended to be. Jumping into his bat form once they were safely out of the building, Vlad supposed they all had secrets.

-YD-

 **Tut tut Malik!**


	9. Control

**Not my characters.**

 **I don't really want to change the rating to M because most of the story isn't, but there may be more misbehaving. It won't be explicit but will be more than implicit.**

 **On we go!**

-YD-

They both dumped the clothes they wore into laundry, and showered to get rid of the smell of garlic lingering on their skin. "Well that was a joyous occasion, we've got a dimidius nephew or niece on the way to add to the half werewolf half brother. All we need now is to find out dad has another illegitimate offspring somewhere and Dracula family life can become a breather sitcom." "Yeah, lets hope that isn't the case. My life is weird enough." They were in the blood cellar now, and Ingrid was choosing which crates and bottles would be offered at their 'party'. Which was making Vlad more nervous by the hour, as soon he was going to have to dance and be around Ingrid while acting normally in a room full of vampires. He couldn't even do that now. "Have you drafted the actual changes to the laws to present yet?" "Working on it. Its not easy to legalise something with so much stigma, let alone with careful restrictions to stop things like the Lecushka brothers happening again with no consequence."

Forcing himself not to jump when Ingrid brushed past him, Vlad shivered inwardly and went back to staring at the bottles in front of him. "Baroness of Bucharest. I never know what dads favourite actually is, it changes every time he uses the word favourite. What about you?" Ingrid hmmed, rifling through the bottles and pulling one out. "Ah. Duchess of Cambridge. The stuff you stole from dad. And tried to say you had seen Erin drinking blood with your own eyes." "Can't blame a girl for trying. You're the one who passed a breather AND slayer off as a half fang in the Dracula nest." "Can't blame a vamp for trying. It worked. Better than your blood theft did anyway." Ducking as Ingrid threw a cork at him with frightening accuracy, Vlad grinned to himself. This, this he could manage. Until Ingrid stood in front of him, looking at her glass rather than him until she lifted it to her lips.

The sound of satisfaction she made was obscene, and Vlad was a fangs length from breaking completely until she spoke, breaking the trance. "Whats with you?" Turning away and breathing deeply, Vlad managed to lie. "Abstaining from human blood isn't easy." He bolted from the room, hiding behind his locked bedroom door and sighing deeply. "Fuck, this is not good." If he didn't know better, he would think Ingrid was trying to break him. She wasn't, for one she didn't want him, and two she didn't have to try, Ingrid seemed to exude seduction. It was her fault, it could have just been one dream but she had to kiss him and let him know what it felt like. And now Vlad couldn't forget it, and what had started as protecting each other from their father had become Ingrid needing protection from him. Living in the same castle and going to the same meetings, that didn't help matters. Not to mention, Ingrid said she would stake him if things turned creepy, and dreaming of kissing her, touching her almost every night, that would count as creepy.

Rubbing hands over his face, Vlad tried to get a grip on himself in a non euphemistic manner. He just had to hold out until the crypt warming, find a vampire girl he could burn off this desire with and that would let him get his head on straight. It wouldn't be too difficult, they weren't even subtle at his coronation. Keeping that at the forefront of his mind, he felt strong enough to leave his room again and went to the library, working on the new law proposals. Stopping for dinner, he edged carefully into the kitchen but found it mercifully empty and fixed himself food. Sleep only made it worse, the dreams returning not made up for by being one day closer to potential salvation. A harsh physical session in the gym tired him out enough to meditate successfully, to keep his power under control before his thinning sanity put every one around him at risk. He was the chosen one, he had to be more careful.

The rest of the time before the next VHC meeting was spent mostly on the new proposals, and while he made a token effort to speak with Ingrid nightly, it was casual and not lengthy - the less time, the less his control wore thin. It felt like much longer than a week since the last time he had done this, pulling on his robes and crown and waiting for Ingrid to fly alongside him to Council. Morgan looked surprised to hear the Slayers Guild meeting had gone well, and the first proposed changes to the dimidius laws were passed far easier than Vlad had even hoped. He didn't bring up the next item on his to do list yet, wanting to have as much factual information behind him as possible and to give them time to adjust to not staking every member of a dimidius bearing clan within hours of finding out.

Vaskow had done as Vlad asked, and he promised to have a date chosen to announce by the next meeting once he had arranged the food and entertainment, and Ingrid had time to review and approve the invite list. "If that is all gentlemen, then we shall return a week from now." Vlad still wasn't entirely used to leading these meetings, to having the power to change laws with little more than a snap of his fingers. If there was a living, conviction free full blood vampire, they would stand priority over the dimdius, but there was no longer a block against overr-18 vampire-dominant heirs now. And if the father was willing to take responsibility for an accidental conception, they would work it out. Repeat offenders would face various punishments, and Vlad had no intentions of the incarcerated Lecushka brother being freed.

Lifted by the happy mood of success, Vlad didn't even hesitate in joining Ingrid at the table in the main living room, goblets of blood and each tasked with a different aspect of planning their crypt warming. Ingrid mostly said nothing, except an occasional "no" to herself as she crossed names off the list. "At least two of these catering companies serve fresh human bodies, remind me to burn them to the ground." "Will do." Ingrid didn't even question Vlad saying he would torch a whole company, probably hoping he would do it with them still inside. "Colour scheme?" "Purple. We did red at the coronation." Running a mental inventory of his clothes, Vlad sighed. "I don't have a purple waistcoat or tie, I hate shopping. Still, beats going with dad I suppose.""If you get all the colours in one trip, you won't have to go again for a while."

"Good point. I'll do that tomorrow, once you give me a guest number I can arrange the rest of it and invite Roque on trial as my personal security." "Isn't he that hippie vamps father?" "Yeah. I don't think he expects getting hired to take me clothes shopping to lead to me having an illicit affair with his daughter, so doesn't matter." Ingrid shrugged, effectively ending the conversation and handing him the approved guest list before she vanished. Rewriting the list more neatly with no scribbles on, he tapped the quill against his face as he thought about dates. It had to be a weeks notice at least, and not the night before a meeting - hangovers were rife after his coronation, best not to risk a more irritable council. If he went now, handed off the information, he could request Roque and place the date for a week from the following night. Bouyed by the idea, he went back to put on his robes and crown and dashed off to the VHC.

Hack looked surprised to see him back, but took the information from Vlad and promised to send the relevant bats out. "So soon?" "Well, I want to get the whole hosting business done with, I'm a young vampire with a demanding betrothed" all true, even if not in the way other vampires thought "and we like our privacy." He made sure to stress the word privacy, and Hack hurried to start the work. "Its all there, numbers and the who, when, where. Thank you Hack. Is Roqueloire still here?" "Yes Your Grandness, I was just leaving. How may I be of assistance?" Vlad indicated to the vampire to walk alongside him, the conversation wouldn't take long. "I'm contemplating who to select as my personal bodyguard, and I wanted to request you accompany me tomorrow. The female has decided I need to go clothes shopping, I would rather not go alone. And shopping with Ingrid... We would never leave." "Of course. Might I make a suggestion?" "Sure." "Take my daughter. She will not look like a bodyguard, but I promise she is trained personally by myself and will be just as efficient at protecting you, without getting off topic over shopping."

If Vlad invited Talitha to meet him at the castle, Ingrid would be less than impressed. "If you're sure. Have her ready to meet me here at 11pm tomorrow." "Of course. Good night Your Grandness." "Night Roque." Vlad set off back to his own castle, noting the sun would rise soon and making straight for his coffin. When he hit the blood cellar, half asleep and half aroused the next night by more dreams, Ingrid was already there selecting the accompaniment for her own meal. "So, excited for a shopping trip with Roque?" "Totally. Its mostly just finding a waistcoat and tie that go together, and ordering it in every colour. Shouldn't be too hard." Unlike him, his brain helpfully substituted. Though given the content of his dreams, he actually shouldn't be. Pulling out a bottle of soya, Vlad ambled off to the kitchen and settled for toast, because it was quick and he could flame it himself.

Vlad wasn't sure why he was lying to Ingrid about going with Talitha, she was just a body guard and Ingrid hadn't actually forbade him speaking to other vampiresses, just not when she was there for the sake of her reputation. All the same, he let her think it was the senior male Roqueloire, not his daughter he was going to meet as he dressed, pocketed his ID and payment card and left for the building. He wasn't dressed for official business, so he hung around outside keeping a wary eye out. "Well. You look different without the robes and crown." Looking down at his red shirt and black jeans, Vlad shrugged at Talitha. "This is the sort of thing I usually have on under them if it helps. Shall we go?" The female nodded, still eyeing his body if he wasn't mistaken as they flew to the nearby clothing store - a high end place this close to the VHC.

Talitha did indeed have a cautious eye out as they went in, though her... Interesting clothing had the main staff there giving them funny looks. "Not sure you're in the right place young vampires." "I was under the impression this was the best place to go for such things." The elderly female vampire, wrinkled and gnarled but eyes keen on his, nodded. "We are." Vlad held out his ID, and the change in her attitude was remarkable. "Apologies Your Grandness, your predecessors would always come in in full attire." "Well, I need to select a new waistcoat and tie, Council robes are not exactly the right thing to have when trying them out." "Of course, of course. Any particular colour?" Thinking of Ingrid and her suggestion, he looked around. "Ultimately, all of them. For now, purple." For an old, wizened stick of biter, the woman was fast and flitted around the store with no difficulty. Suddenly there was a neat, high pile of waistcoats and a row of ties waiting. "Each is in order of how they will match. Take all the time you need Your Grandness."

Undeniably impressed, Vlad went through the pile, automatically discarding ones with patterns or detailing Ingrid would complain about. "Most fetching Chosen One." the old woman rasped as he tried on yet another set, and he was pleased to hear this particular design was available in multiple colours. Standing with his arms out to be measured reminded him of getting ready for his 'wedding' to Adze, but as he knew the purple one fit already he had that one to take home, and the others to be made and delivered when every colour was ready. "You've been most helpful, thank you." Between his status and the fact he had just ordered a dozen expensive waistcoats and ties, Vlad wasn't surprised they were falling over their fangs to thank him for coming in and bidding him to return sometime this century. Judging by the age of the vampire in front of him, Vlad more than expected he would long outlive her. Taking the bag with his purple attire in, he reminded them to keep the list of colours he chose on file in case Ingrid had to come and order matching things.

Escaping outside, Vlad was about to suggest parting ways when Talitha actually spoke up. "You drink soy substitute right?" He nodded. "There's a veggie vamp place nearby that does soya shakes, unless you need to get back?" "Sure, lead the way." It was indeed nearby, only two minutes flitting later they were outside the place. Talitha went in ahead and got their drinks, the better to check his wasn't spiked with garlic or something apparently. Sucking at the straw, it tasted like soya blood, only fruitier. "Not bad." Rather than sit attracting attention, they walked through the night air. "While I'm sure I could be staked for asking, do you really expect me to believe you and your sister are a normal betrothed couple?" Well, that was a straight for the jugular question. "My relationship is nothing to do with you. And you're right, I could have you staked." "Are you going to?" "No, every one gets one question when it comes to me and Ingrid. Between my title and our unique relationship, everyone has something to say. That was your first and only warning."

Talitha didn't drop the matter though, glaring at her cup. "You two are nothing alike." "Opposites attract." "You are brother and sister." "So?" That used to be a problem, but Vlad was losing the ability to remember that day by day. "You care about more than power and blood. She doesn't." "You don't know what you're talking about. I'm sorry if you have a thing for me and don't like it, but you are only still alive now because I quite like your father. Otherwise you would have been dusted for your attitude. Now go." She didn't leave, all but throwing herself at Vlad and kissing him. "Get off me!" A deep rooted realisation that his first thought was to reject the contact sank in his gut, but right now Vlad needed to deal with Talitha. Jumping to the VHC, Vlad stormed inside. "Roqueloire!" The man was at his side in a second. "A word. You too." Talitha was stood looking nervous behind them, following them shakily into a nearby room. "I like you Roque, I do. Which is the only reason your daughter is alive right now. Questioning me, my betrothal in public! Even after I said she only got one chance, she failed to let the matter drop. All of which ended in some bizarre failed attempt at seduction!"

Roque looked over at his daughter, then back at Vlad. "My apologies Your Grandness. I didn't know she would make a fool of herself when I suggested it, I merely thought you would prefer to maintain an illusion of not having a bodyguard. Do you have anything to say Talitha?" Talitha shook her head, staying silent. "Are you going to punish her sir?" "Not this time. Just be sure to keep her away from me, until she learns to conduct herself at the very least. And next time, you can be my bodyguard. I'm much less concerned you'll attempt such things." "Again, my sincerest apologies. Rest assured, it won't happen again." "It had better not. Ingrid is not so forgiving." A brief handshake with Roque to assure the man Vlad still liked him, and he was grabbing the shopping bag and heading back to his home.

Taking stock of each room as he passed, he found Ingrid in the main living room reading by firelight. About to say he had gotten what he went out for, he hadn't yet spoken before Ingrid started. "You reek of soya blood and patchouli oil. Let me guess. Talitha." Dropping into the sofa opposite, he sniffed at his shirt and realised she was right. "Roque suggested I take her instead, because she wouldn't look like a bodyguard but he had trained her himself. I trusted his judgement. Talitha was an adequate bodyguard, even suggested a vegetarian vampire cafe and their soya shake was awesome." Ingrid finally looked up from her book, marking the page and closing it on her lap. "And? You wouldn't look irritated if that was it." Shedding the shirt he now realised reeked of Talitha, Vlad tossed it into the fire and stretched out on the sofa. "Oh good, I'm blind now." Realising he had essentially half stripped, Vlad grinned. "So you wouldn't notice if I ditched the trousers too?" "I will fry you where you sit, grand high vampire or not. Talitha?"

"Right. She started on at me about our betrothal, and even when I told her to drop it, she kept on at me and then she tried to kiss me." The only outward sign Ingrid was any kind of bothered came from a flare in the fireplace, but that could have been his shirt catching. "Did you dust the hippie grave digger?" "No. For one, I like Roque so I told him what happened, he was as surprised by her behaviour as I was. And two, was she wrong?" Ingrid gave him an unreadable look, which quickly melted into her usual scowl. "That isn't the point, that kind of attitude towards the grand high vamp is inexcusable. You're too soft." Vlad could taste the "Not when it comes to you" on his tongue, wishing his brain would stop trying to get him dusted by coming up with things completely inappropriate to say to his sister. "Well, at least she's been set straight, and Roque won't dare make alternate suggestions when I ask him to accompany me in the future."

"Whatever. Did you set up this crypt warming nonsense?" "Yes. Dropped everything off with Hack yesterday. Its a week today, the soonest I could do it to get it out of the way." And the sooner Vlad hoped he would find someone he wanted, at least long enough to alleviate his frustrations. "Got the purple?" He held up the bag. "Yep. And got measured while I was there, picked out what was essentially the same thing I bought in about a dozen colours. And told them to keep that list of colour choices on file, so if you go in for something they can match." "Impressive. For you." Vlad floated the bag over to Ingrid so she could look at the things without him having to get up, though the only actual approval she gave was a less-disgruntled-than-usual hum. "It'll do." That was a glowing commendation from Ingrid, so Vlad figured he had done alright. "Now go put some clothes on you cretin." "Go sit on a stake, I'm comfortable." Plus, Ingrid couldn't quite look at him right now, so she was far less likely to notice Vlad's random bouts of fixating on her.

This became a technique he employed more often, though he expected it wouldn't affect her for long before she got used to it and just started throwing things at him. It only had to last to the crypt warming, that was what he kept telling himself, even in the shower dealing with the aftereffects of his dreams before he had to leave for Council. Dry and dressed minutes after, Vlad knocked back a glass of soya and pulled on his robe and crown. "Finally wearing a shirt again?" "Well I figure going topless at Council will raise a few eyebrows. And if Talitha is there she may not be able to resist." "Who could resist a pale, scrawny fangless geek? Oh wait, every one." "Go stake yourself. Ready to go?" Ingrid smirked as she nodded, thankfully shifting into bat form while Vlad shook away the feelings she inspired, then flapping his own wings. Roque was as polite as ever, and his daughter nowhere to be seen.

"I take it you each received your invitations? Good. Now the pleasantries are done with, have any of the Lecushka offspring been found?" He hadn't heard from Jonno yet, so he figured the Slayers were still looking. "A few, mostly the recent ones that are only a few years old. Finding where the brothers were ten or fifteen years ago isn't easy." "I know, but we have to find them all. Untransformed vampires can still be dangerous, especially to themselves." Vlad still questioned how he had got away with not merging with his reflection(s) for over a year and a half, but he wasn't about to share that. "Of course sir. Shall we move on to the new library system?" There was nothing more to be said for the dimidius concerns, and Vlad wasn't done with his work in the werewolf laws, so they moved on to talking about digitalising some of their oldest books, to preserve the knowledge in case they were lost. "Warnock, he's good with computers. Might have to promote him to get him to do it right though." "I'll sort that. If that's all?" They agreed and adjourned, though Morgan hovered in the doorway eyeing Ingrid until he realised Vlad could see him.

Bracing himself, Vlad reached out and pulled Ingrid into his hold. He could feel her confusion, but she relaxed a little when he spoke. "Something you forgot Morgan?" "No no, not at all." The old vampire left quickly after that, so Ingrid wriggled out of his arms and Vlad didn't miss her there at all. "Creep." "Agreed. So, want to come help me convince Warnock?" Ingrid scowled but nodded. "I'm suddenly understanding why there aren't women on the Council before me, too easy to use for bribery." "Well you don't have to come, but I thought you wanted to be seen as involved." "Fine." Warnock was a basic paper pusher, but he was the only one who understood things like the internet and technology that wasn't Vlad and Ingrid here. Knocking his door out of politeness, they let themselves in anyway. "Warnock, right?" The vampire didn't look up immediately from his computer, answering with "and you are?"

Rather than reply, Vlad waited. Eventually when he looked up, the skinny vampire almost fell out of his chair before standing. "Apologies Your Grandness, I didn't think you would lower yourself to come to these depths." "Well I did. You're our technology buff, and we want the oldest books in the library computerised, then the rest to follow. You up to the challenge?" "Of course. Though I don't think my current equipment is up to the task." "Write up the order, leave it with Hack for me to approve." "Thank you sir. Can I help any other way?" "You could stop staring at my future bloodwife." Ingrid hadn't even had to speak, Warnock was staring at her like he had found the Lazarus Spring. "Your... My apologies." "Can we go now? It smells like loneliness and boredom." Mentally thanking Ingrid for her natural lack of patience, they left. "You didn't even have to talk, the slayers were harder to break than that." Ingrid smirked darkly, her face glowing in the moonlight. "I'm perfect, obviously." He barely held on to a verbal agreement then, playing the few days to their party chant over and over in his head as they flew home. He could do this.

-YD-

 **Now I will go work on my other stories, since this has nine chapters and no end in sight. Oops.**


	10. Mistakes

**Don't own the characters.**

 **I'm a good little bat, I updated Vl-Adam-Ir and Chosen Two! So now I can come back and obsess over this story. I started it what, a few days ago and this is chapter ten... I have a problem.**

 **On we go!**

-YD-

By the day before their crypt warming, Vlad was mentally climbing the walls. Twice nightly showers had definitely acquired Ingrid's interest, and Vlad had been spending extra time in the training room just to explain half of them and try to burn off the anxious energy he acquired dreaming about Ingrid and waiting for the party. On a venture to the kitchen for food and blood, he found Ingrid already there. "What's with you? You're jumpy, and outright anti-social by vampire standards." "I thought that would be a positive for you, not having to look at my scrawny pale visage. I'm just nervous about tomorrow, the last time Draculas hosted a party, it was mine and Adze's blood binding day which ended in an attempt on my life, Erin dying and finding out Malik was our brother. And I don't like the idea of so many others in this relatively peaceful haven."

"So invite them through the doors exactly for the purpose of the ballroom. Then they aren't invited into the actual domicile, they still need inviting through the doors to the dwelling." "You couldn't have brought this up days ago?" Clutching at the bottle in his hand, Vlad tried to remember only one more day. "When? You've been either training, reading, showering or sleeping." "Again, I thought seeing less of me would be a positive to you." Vlad jumped when he turned around, finding Ingrid all of three inches away from him. "You're the one who said you didn't want us living like strangers, and you're the one avoiding me." Feeling his body become very aware Ingrid was so close, he tried to carefully wriggle free of the tight space. "I told you, I'm nervous. Training helps me burn off the anxiety." Successfully escaping before he gave himself away, Vlad breathed a sigh of relief and swigged from his bottle. "Whatever. I only wanted to point out if dad turns up I'll be sleeping in 'our' room, so be quiet or I'll break down the wall and dust you for a good days sleep." "Noted."

Giving up on obtaining actual food now he was obviously aroused, Vlad darted up to his room clutching his bottle of soy. Ingrid was right, he was avoiding her. He didn't think telling her it was for the sake of both their sanity would sway her. Grumbling to himself as he climbed into the shower again, he dealt with his body then fell into his coffin. Not long now, when he woke up it would almost be time. And until then, he would be sleeping, dressing, preparing, entertaining. Whatever he was hoping for, it wasn't the way his dreams were more intense than ever, and Vlad felt mortified when he realised he needed a shower for a different reason. "I'm an eighteen year old vampire, this is ridiculous" he groused to himself as he peeled off his soiled underwear, shaking his head at having a wet dream when he wasn't a thirteen year old boy scared to touch himself in case his father dropped into his room.

Climbing into his clothes as though they would cover up what had happened in his mind, Vlad had to try three times to do his tie right, his hands shaking with pent up anxiety. Picking up his cape and crown to put on later, he went down to let the caterers and band in so they could set up before going to pour soy down his throat until he felt almost too full. It was a good thing nobody was in this part of the castle he mused, as he pressed the back of his hand across his mouth to burp slightly. "Barbarian." "Evening Ingrid. Ready for the hilarity to ensue?" "About as much as I am to take up sunbathing." They were both already dressed, complimentary purple accents to their black outfits and there were purple hints through Ingrid's black eye makeup. "What?" "Nothing, I was just waiting to see if you were planning to stand in the doorway all night." Vlad clicked his fingers, lifting up a couple of crates of blood to float alongside him and Ingrid moved from the doorway to let him pass her. Perfume filled his senses, haunting him as he escaped up to the ballroom.

Drawing in a breath that wasn't saturated with Ingrid, Vlad fought to clear his head as he dropped the crates off in the function area and left to get his crown and cape, preparing for the initial arrival of guests soon to occur. Ingrid appeared just before the first VHC members did, standing at his side as appropriate as they greeted the new arrivals. "Clever, keeping everyone out of your actual dwelling and still hosting." "That was Ingrid's idea, but then I would hardly choose someone who wasn't intelligent." Vlad wasn't sure whether to even care or not when he caught his father turning up, it would just mean Ingrid may torture him a little bit more to irritate the Count. "Play nice, I don't need a disinherit tonight." Ingrid growled low in her throat, belied by her smile and the spike of want in his gut but it was an agreement. He put it off as long as possible, but eventually it would become noticable if he kept avoiding touching Ingrid.

"Dance?" "Thought you'd never ask. Lets get this over with." Having already noticed and discounted something like a dozen females who had been looking at him, Vlad was more tightly wound than ever as he and Ingrid bowed slightly to each other and stepped close enough to dance. If anyone was watching them dance closely enough to notice, they may have been as confused as Vlad when Ingrid's hand wrapped around his waist, the other finding his shoulder and leaving him to hold her waist himself. His cape was an effective cover as Ingrid's hand slid under his clothes, and Vlad could only look at her in confusion as he fought the overwhelming desire Ingrid was stoking. "Why are you doing this?" Vlad wasn't even sure whether or not he had said it out loud, distracted by Ingrid's nails tingling over his lower back. Either way, Ingrid didn't answer, looking up at him and there was no doubt in his mind she could see the desire in his eyes.

There was definitely no denying she knew what was going on when she stepped forwards, and he had to move slowly not to lose the only skin contact they had. Meaning Ingrid essentially walked into him, and Vlad felt frozen to the spot as she definitely felt him hard against her. Ingrid didn't miss a beat, continuing their dance and touching him like his body wasn't announcing things it shouldn't and as though she wasn't tormenting him to insanity right now. Forcing himself to not look as crazed as he felt, to keep dancing with Ingrid like he wasn't clinging to the last threads of control. "Is dad looking?" Wondering just how much of what Ingrid was doing was to annoy their father, and rapidly realising how little he cared now, Vlad pretended to look for all of a second before saying "yes".

This time he was expecting it, no surprise to mute the feeling of Ingrid kissing him and her nails pressing harder into his back. This time he wasn't running solely on instinct, kissing her back properly and Vlad was in no way prepared for the feeling of Ingrid actually whimpering against his mouth. Unlike with the breather in the bar, he had to fight not to pant heavily as they broke apart, and fight to remember there were a lot of other vampires in the room with them. Ingrid's eyes were brighter than usual, and her hand didn't leave his back. "Did you even look?" "No." She didn't get a chance to answer as Vlad lost a little more control over himself and kissed her, clutching at her waist and feeling her whimper quietly again.

He was jolted back to reality somewhat by a hissed "get a coffin" nearby, which Vlad growled in response to but it was enough to shatter the moment. Her hand slipped from under his shirt, making Vlad shiver with loss. They finished out the song, but it was stiff, twisted and Vlad felt sick that he couldn't control his dark desires. Bowing slightly to Ingrid, he could feel her want to get away from him as she turned. Uncaring that he only drank soya, Vlad drained two glasses of something thick, spicy and old vintage to try and lose the taste of Ingrid in his mouth that was driving him to distraction. Vlad went and sat on his throne in here so he couldn't do any more damage, scowling regally out into the room as vampires ate, drank, danced and potential marriages were made or broken in minutes of weakness. Political affiliations began or ended under over-indulgence of blood, and more than one vampire was thrown out by Roque and his very large, very strange looking companion.

The companion was later introduced as "Father Tollund", a deeply religious vampire. Apparently. "You don't look particularly happy about all this Your Grandness." "I'm not, I don't like having almost a hundred vampires packed into one room, I don't like parties a great deal and I really don't like being called "your grandness" in my home." Vlad didn't think Roque would understand his burgeoning sexual frustration, or emotional distress, nor was he inclined to share it so he vented about party related frustrations and left it at that. Roque left his side soon after to keep an eye on things, almost overzealous in his security duties after the "mishap" with Talitha. By the time 3am crept up on him, Vlad had accepted nobody here was going to change what he felt towards Ingrid, especially after her tiny torture session he could still feel tingling on his skin. Irritable, frustrated in multiple ways and angry with himself, he gestured to the band to slow down to a stop.

"I would like to thank you all for coming, but if some of you don't leave now you won't beat the sunrise. Until next time!" Within fifteen minutes, with a few personal goodbyes for the VHC members, the room was empty save for the caterers cleaning up after themselves, and the three Dracula clan members present at the party. "I presume you're staying?" His father was somewhat drunk and less than steady on his feet - Vlad would not trust him to fly back to Garside right now. "Yes yes, take me to your guest crypt!" He wasn't surprised his father expected him to have one, and once he saw off the catering crew Vlad dumped his father in a guest coffin to sleep off the intoxication. Tugging off his cape and crown, Vlad dropped them in the kitchen and stared at a half empty bottle of O- like it could answer his problems. When his brain finally nudged him to go upstairs and hate himself quietly in his coffin, he went.

His bedroom door was ajar, confusing him as he knew he hadn't left it that way. Pushing it open tentatively, wary of some potential assassin, he breathed a minute sigh of relief when nobody jumped out to kill him. That didn't stop him jumping in surprise when he felt a hand on his back, which he turned to see was Ingrid. Not wanting to make a fool of himself again, Vlad retreated further into his room and started on his waistcoat and tie, hanging them up carefully next to the red ones and imagining the rainbow assortment he would have soon. "Are you going to explain?" "Are you? You started... That." "I wasn't expecting the reaction I got, I was trying to make you look a little less like you had just been staked. You're the one who... I don't need to say it do I?" "No. Now go away." Ingrid Dracula was not an easy person to get rid of when she didn't want something. Now she wanted an explanation, and Vlad wasn't going to get rid of her easily. Hoping he could make her uncomfortable enough to leave, he moved on to unbuttoning his shirt.

Dumping it in the laundry pile, Ingrid hadn't moved yet. "I would say take a picture, but vampires and photos don't really mix. So go." It was fairly apparent anyway, the heavy mood not assuaging his bodies awareness of Ingrid's proximity, but Vlad did not want to drop trousers in front of her so sat on the edge of his coffin to take off his boots. As soon as they were off, Ingrid's fingers were lacing through his hair, pulling him upright and she was kissing him again with no audience to perform to. It wasn't even a conscious thought to follow her to "their" coffin, which had only seen marginally more use than their guest coffins by now. Putting distance between them may have been the hardest thing he had ever done, but he had to say it. "You need to say stop." "Why?" "Because if you don't, then I'm going to do something we can never take back." Ingrid reached behind her, holding up a small box. "Why do you think I was in your room?" "To raid my contraception?" "Shut up and get in the coffin."

Vlad was only too happy to agree, expecting to wake up from the dream any second now as Ingrids clothes lasted less than a minute beneath his eager hands, the desperate whimpers against his mouth the closest Ingrid got to saying she wanted this with sounds rather than actions. Her actions spoke for themselves as she pushed his trousers off, rolling the latex over him and then it was happening and his dreams didn't even come close. He didn't even need to recover from the first time, nerves still skittering pleasured sparks of desire through him as he rolled on another condom and Ingrid didn't fight him taking her again. By the third time, he had gained just enough presence of mind back that he could realise this was what he had been fighting, and instead he had caved. But then, judging by the grooves in his skin from her nails and the sounds she made as they kissed again, Ingrid had caved too.

There was no postcoital conversation, the closest to it being Ingrid kissing him again after he ditched the rubber and wiped himself off, something infinitely more intimate about her kissing him when they were bare skin to bare skin but nothing would follow other than sleep. Unwilling to break the moment again, he let her set the tone as they laid to rest for the day. Ingrid was gone when he woke up, and if he weren't naked and sore all over, Vlad would have expected it to be another dream. Unwilling to give up Ingrid's scent on his skin just yet, he went to dress before heading down to find breakfast and apparently his coffinmate from last night. His father was in the kitchen, and looked mildly ill as last night seemed to come back to him, no doubt encouraged by the distinctive pheromones on Vlad. "I had hoped that was all a terrible nightmare. Sadly not." "Well you're not drunk and you have all night, feel free to leave at any moment." Pouring himself a glass of soya, Vlad couldn't remember feeling so surprisingly content in... A long time.

"I shall, mark my words Vladdy. I was just thirsty." "After last night? I wouldn't drink until you get home if I were you." Expecting the very obvious evidence he and ingrid had shared more than just the coffin last night helped, his father didn't hang around long. Once he was gone, Vlad started feeling unsettled. Going off in search of Ingrid, he had to look through half the castle to find her lurking in the back shelves of the library. "What's biting your neck?" "Last night. It was a mistake." "Such a mistake you let it happen? Three times?" Already feeling worse by the minute at the obvious discontent on Ingrids face, Vlad lashed out somewhat. "Yes! Just leave me alone. I've showered twice, I still feel dirty." Taking a step back, he started feeling sick with himself. "Not like that. I mean, last night I wanted it. In hindsight, worst idea since garlic filled pizza crusts. Now go." He didn't feel any better for Ingrid saying she had wanted it last night, not when it meant he had the true knowledge of how it would feel, and the utter agony of her looking so horrified with what they had done.

-YD-

 **There is soooo much more to come and it isn't just going to revolve around Vlad and Ingrid, who were very naughty vamps!**

 **I tried to stop them... Ok that's a lie. But they were very insistent last night regardless!**


	11. Brother

**Don't own the characters.**

 **I spent about an hour watching Young Dracula on iPlayer - have you SEEN the new logo for CBBC? Its hideous.**

 **Anyway, that's got nothing to do with how much I love writing this.**

 **On we go!**

-YD-

The reminder of Ingrid on his skin went from good to bad in less than the time it took Vlad to hurtle into his room and stand under the shower. Scrubbing until it hurt couldn't shift the guilt inside him, and after the water ran almost as cold as his body Vlad admitted defeat, climbed out and dried and dressed. Brushing his teeth to rid the taste of her only made him feel sicker, too nauseous to even think of eating or drinking as he locked himself in the training room. The walls shook when he missed the bag and hit brick, but the injuries on his knuckles barely registered as he lashed out again. Vlad knew he needed to reign it in, his powers were always simmering just below the surface and it was dangerous to let them out this way. Growling in anger and frustration, he heard and felt the storm brewing outside and forced his emotions down.

Dropping to his hands and knees, his hands curled so tightly the concrete ground cracked beneath his finger tips. He should have been stronger, should have seen Ingrid regretting it but he was blind, ruled by feelings again. Vlad was reminded of the dreams he had when he was only thirteen, the earth beneath his hands as he shifted into a wolf. He wouldn't mind that now, getting to be someone else or something else. As the raging feelings slowly ebbed away, he felt exhausted inside and out as he stumbled back to his feet. Clicking his fingers to open the door, he was relieved to find his rattling of the castle walls hadn't attracted Ingrid - Vlad thought he may prefer a walk in the sunlight than see the look that had been in her eyes because of him again.

The next council meeting was only a couple of days away, they couldn't avoid each other forever. Though Vlad was prepared to bet they were both about to try. Not used to bothering, Vlad actually put his senses out to check the kitchen was empty before he went in to get food and blood - seeing Ingrid would make him sick again. Repeating the process before he ventured into the library, Vlad poured himself into research, both to back up his dimidius laws if someone challenged them, and to start preparing the future werewolf laws. Thinking of Wolfie stung a little, wondering what the innocent little boy would make of he and Ingrid. Scrawling down the last of his notes as the sun began to rise, he fell into his coffin and stared up at the lid. Ingrid kissing him softly afterwards was what haunted him now, not letting him forget the way their bodies fit against each other so well in a way he hated.

Sleep did not come easily, and his dreams had shifted from Ingrid naked beneath him to more of her bright eyes and throaty whimpers when they kissed. Vlad didn't know what to make of it, except he guessed his subconscious wanted Ingrid not disgusted to be near him more than anything else now. Remembering the dream world dreams, Vlad wondered where that had gone. Since his dream about being the chosen one, he hadn't been back. Oh, he had dreams obviously, but no slayers chasing him that led to real world injuries. His father had normal dreams too, or "human" ones, nightmares too. He had no idea about Ingrid, but then Vlad doubted she would appreciate him asking. Jotting the curiosity down on a piece of paper near his coffin, he resolved to look into it when he was done putting the early things about hybrid children together - the dimidius laws were an excellent starting point.

"You look terrible." "Charming as ever Ingrid." He hadn't even noticed her turning up in the library, lost in thought as he stared at the books. "Just trying to act normal." Clenching his fists and trying to reign his anger in, Vlad failed and snapped back "well maybe don't seduce me then tell me I made you feel dirty! Aside from anything else going on in my head, I really didn't need the guilt." Zooming past her before he got even angrier, Vlad punched his fist into the hole he already made in the wall of the training room and felt his skin tear again. The marks on his back were still there, he could feel them even if he couldn't see them, nor could he reach to heal them. Running his tongue over the abrasions on his hand, he watched as they knitted together and healed closed. Vampires healed fast, and the only things that could scar permanently were fangs, or argentalium liquid left to burn through their skin. Remembering Ryan, Vlad had to wonder where Ingrid had bitten him - he hadn't had a scar on his neck and it was only about hitting an artery with their fangs - necks were just easier and vampires were naturally drawn to them.

Sending off a message to Jonno for an update on their side of things, Vlad went back to scowling at the fist-shaped hole in the thick wall. "Chasing a few leads, think we are getting close to a few of the youngest" was the answer, so Vlad mentally prepared himself for another trip back to the UK soon. It was a month away still, but Vlad was already desperate for council recess to come around so he could take the time to try and untangle his fried brain. Not that he had any success yet with trying most of the week. "Stop doing that!" He felt Ingrid turn up behind him, knowing his marked up back was on show from feeling so trapped his t-shirt felt stifling. "Is this how its going to be now?" Forcing himself to turn around, Vlad shrugged as he looked at her. "I was doing ok before, you're the one who made everything change." "Before? Is this why you've been even more of a pain in the neck than usual?" Backing away from her now, he shook his head, more to himself than her. "It doesn't matter, I just can't look at you when you're looking at me that way."

For the second time that night he ran, getting away from her before he cracked or cried or something else he couldn't think of yet. This was probably the worst way to deal with this problem, but Vlad was all out of ideas and rapidly running out of threads of control. He couldn't even run away properly to clear his head, there was a whole race he had to govern and the cease fire would not last without him. Ingrid didn't seek him out again that night, and Vlad only left to grab a bottle of soya before flitting back to his room to hide neatly in his coffin. By the time they had to leave for Council together, Vlad felt utterly drained. Tightening his robes and picking up the crown, he didn't wait for Ingrid this time as he left. "Where is your dear betrothed your grandness? Not too ill to attend I hope?" Hack asked after her, but Vlad sort of shrugged. "You know women, we live on their schedule not the other way around." "Some of us don't like leaving their castle looking like they got roughed up by slayers on the way here. Evening Hack." Again, she crept up behind him without him even noticing, which didn't say much for Vlad's senses really.

"Miss Dracula. Are we ready to head through?" Vlad nodded, taking his accursed staff from Roque as they passed him en route to the meeting room. After their 'behaviour' at the Dracula castle, Vlad knew they had to ease off the tense silences or people would start to wonder what was going on. That didn't make it easier to look at Ingrid, but he managed to get through the mercifully short meeting without cracking, staying only long enough to check the others left before Ingrid this time. When he left the building he treated himself to a good long fly, stretching his wings for the simple joy of freedom in the air. His problems were waiting for him when he landed, but those few hours of gliding through the night had been peaceful. A quick trip to the kitchen alleviated him of his robes and crown, slowly drinking down his glass of soya and trying to cling to the sense of relaxation.

It wasn't to last, when he saw Ingrid again in the library and her eyes were bright like they had been that night, his chest constricting like she was weighing on him physically as well as mentally. "What do you want from me?" "I'd settle for honesty." "Honesty is for breathers." "And you're as human as vampires come." She had him there, Vlad was probably the only vampire alive who clung to the motion they had souls, not just black pits of blood and thirst. Ingrid kept looking at him, waiting for an answer. "Why did you do it? I'm going out of my mind trying to work out where all these feelings are coming from and you just drag me into a coffin and... And then make me feel like I did something terrible?" Ingrid didn't say anything, just stood looking deep in thought for minutes that ticked by like hours. They both jumped when Vlad's phone rung, the heavy silence broken.

"Jonno, this isn't a good time." "Sorry, but you need to get here. You and Ingrid." "Why?" Already anxiously wound up as he was, Jonno's tone didn't help him in the slightest. "Just get here, you'll barely make the sunrise if you leave now. I swear it's important." "Alright. I'll be there. No promises about Ingrid." Hanging up the phone, Vlad scrubbed a hand over his face. "What was that?" "Not a clue. Jonno said we need to go to him. Now. And apparently its important." Both of them knew they were putting off dealing with what had happened, but neither of them said as much as they dashed to get ready to leave again. Bagging soya bottles as he was going to be there at least the day, if not longer, Vlad pulled on his zip up jacket and met Ingrid at the door. "You're coming then?" "I'm curious." Shrugging, he leapt up into bat form and got flapping, they were literally in the few minutes to sunrise by landing time as they went. Jonno was waiting as they landed, hurrying to invite them inside before the sun could dust them.

"This had better be important, I was painting my nails." Several nearby slayers looked at Ingrid in confusion, but Vlad and Jonno were both more than used to things like that from her. Though Vlad knew she was lying, but he was hardly going to say "actually we were talking about how we slept together after entering a betrothal contract but its not like that" instead. "I didn't believe this myself until I saw it with my own eyes." "Saw what?" "Did you know you have a brother?" Both Dracula's stopped dead then and looked at Jonno in confusion. "I'm guessing you don't mean Malik, or Wolfie?" "No. A half human brother." Remembering Ingrids offhand comment about this being all they needed, Vlad was surprised. "How... What... Huh?" "Eloquent." "Sit on a stake Ingrid. Jonno?" The slayer boy looked a little uncomfortable, but still answered. "We've been looking for people with all those signs you gave me, and you volunteered your blood for the vampire database. He buzzed as a match to you, and then I saw him and I knew for sure. Given that he's too old to be your son, he has to be your brother. Half brother anyway."

"What do you mean, saw him?" "Its easier if you see for yourself. Come on." They followed Jonno along through the enormous building, up stairs that led away from the weapons production at the bottom. "Uh, Jonno, mind turning off the UV beams?" They were almost invisible, but there were shimmers in the air where Vlad and Ingrid could be dust just by walking through. "Sorry, this isn't exactly normal procedure. You two shouldn't even be allowed up here." The beams in the hallway vanished when Jonno hit a switch in a panel full of them, so the two could follow him. "Vlad, Ingrid, meet the Giles. You'll understand in a minute." Sharing a loaded look with Ingrid, animosity and issues forgotten for this brief moment, they stepped through the door Jonno indicated.

Five voices all went "wow" in sync, and Vlad expected all for the exact same reason. There were two female humans, one clearly the mother and another Vlad assumed to be a sister/daughter. The male was the interesting one, as aside from a few tiny differences around the nose and ears, he could have been Vlad's twin. "Its like looking in a mirror. Do you think this means I'll get taller George?" Vlad looked around for this 'George', as there were no other males in the room. "Nah, the girl is tall too, must be from their mother." The young girl was the one to answer. "Uh. Hi. I'm Vlad, this is my sister Ingrid. And you are?" He didn't add the Dracula, unsure how much these humans knew. "I'm Sally Giles, this is my son Adam, and my daughter Georgina." "Muuuum!" "Except we can't call her that, this is George." Jonno nudged Vlad from behind, probably to encourage him to stop standing in the doorway like an idiot.

He and Ingrid stepped further into the room, taking the two empty seats. "So, do you two know why we are here? Other than for this magic trick of my long lost twin appearing. Are we twins? Mum did you sell off my brother?" The look-alike was considerably more banterous than Vlad, joking about a bizarre situation with no sign of nerves. "No Adam, I didn't. There was definitely only one of you when you were born." "How old are you Adam?" It was weird, the boy even sounded like Vlad, the constant back and forth of his life meaning Vlad's accent had never truly settled into one dialect. "Fifteen, I'm sixteen in a few months." Seems the slayers had found him just in time then. "Well I turned eighteen several weeks ago, so no, we can't be twins." "Must be brothers then, I mean, I never knew my dad, mum got pregnant at Whitby Goth Festival but didn't have much but a name and a hangover to go on. Your dad isn't called Salem Smith is he?"

Both Vlad and Ingrid snorted in amusement at that, having never heard that particular alias before. "Salem Smith? I don't think so. Hold on." Vlad hunted through his bag, pulling out a family portrait he tended to carry with him. "This is my family." He held the picture out to Sally, who's eyes widened in surprise. "That's him." "Bats, dad got about didn't he?" "Like mum is any better." 'George', a tall, thin girl with a very youthful but smiling face and wildly curly hair, looked at the two of them in confusion. "Did you say bats?" Vlad hurried to look round at Jonno, who shook his head. They didn't know yet then. Trying to work out a way to break the news gently, his thoughts were interrupted by Ingrid's voice. "Yes. Its a pretty common thing for vampires like us to say."

-YD-

 **So I've done Adam!Vlad, full vampire!Vlad and dimidius!Vlad before, how about a story with both full vampire!Vlad and dimidius!Adam? Teehee.**


	12. Pizza

**Don't own... Sadly.**

 **So. Back again? I don't blame you, if you're half as into my work as I am then you must be hooked! Muahaha**

 **On we go!**

-YD-

Three voices replied with "vampire!?" and Sally looked more than a little terrified. "Yes, but we aren't going to hurt you, I'm the one who pushed through a cease fire that means vampires don't bite breathers. You're safe, I promise." Sally did not look appeased, Adam looked confused and George looked interested beyond what a young child should - Vlad was reminded forcibly of Robin. "Do you sleep in a coffin?" "Yeah?" "Can I see your fangs?" Wanting to show they weren't lying, but also not dangerous, Vlad let his canines lengthen. "Wow! That's so cool. How come Adam gets to be this cool, he's not cool at all!" Retracting them before the mother human tried to stake him or escape, Vlad tried to smile soothingly. "You're kidding right? I mean, I can see you guys are my brother and sister, and according to him our DNA is the same so that's all above board. But vampires don't exist."

Rubbing at his temples for a minute, Vlad tried to think of a way to explain it. "So, almost sixteen? Let me guess. Dental pain, strange dreams, not feeling the cold much, craving rare meat, a weird fascination with girls - or boys, we don't judge - necks, random episodes of anger, seeing weird things in the mirror, a gradual increase in physical strength and endurance, and random times where your senses get sharper?" "He's been to the dentists three times, they can't work out why his teeth hurt." Looking to the mother, Vlad nodded. "His change is coming, the pain is his fangs coming through." "Change?" "We come into full vampirism at sixteen, he doesn't have long. Its lucky we found him." Adam still looked utterly overwhelmed, though his future had just hit him like sunlight so Vlad wouldn't hold it against him.

"I get that this is a lot to take in." "No shit." "Language son!" "Sorry mum. So, who's my father?" Vlad was prepared for more disbelief, but answered anyway. "Our names are Vladimir and Ingrid Dracula. Our father is Count Dracula." "Is he here too?" Shaking his head, Vlad wasn't sure how to word this. "No. We haven't seen eye to eye since Ingrid and I got engaged." "Excuse me?" In honesty, he had forgotten Jonno was in the room. "Its not how it sounds" that was questionable, but now wasn't the time "Its to give us time where dad can't pull another stunt like Adze." Jonno had been there for that, and nodded but still looked struck dumb. "Vampires can marry their siblings? Nice." The distaste was clear on Adams face. "Not easily, it's kind of a legal loophole because our parents never married. Its all technicalities, we sleep in separate coffins and everything." Except that one-time.

"Coffins. Of course. I can't think straight, my life is over as I know it isn't it?" "For now. You're half human, you get the choice." "So I don't have to become a vampire?" "No, you do. But you don't have to stay one, you can change back at eighteen. If that's what you want." "Really?" Vlad nodded, somewhat envious of Adam having such a choice - It was what he had wanted for years. If it weren't for the laws and protections dependent on his status, Vlad would probably still want it. "So. What happens now?" "That's up to you. You need to be in Transylvania before your sixteenth birthday, so you can transform. Before that is kind of your choice. You can come back with us tonight, or stay with your family until you need to come over. Either way, you can't tell anyone else about it, it's not something to share. Its also worth mentioning, your symptoms will only get worse." A thought occured to Vlad then. "Jonno, can you go through criminal records? I wonder if we won't find more there than just through medical." "Sure, I'll go add that to the list. You alright here?"

That was aimed at the humans, who looked at the vampires warily but nodded. The slayer left, though Vlad could sense a guard nearby. "If I come with you, what happens to me?" "We'll give you a room in the castle, and you can learn about what's happening to you. We have a pretty great library." "What about school?" Chewing his lip in thought, Vlad didn't know. "Don't worry about that son, exams will still be waiting when you can come back. Will we be able to see him?" "That's up to Adam. He'll be able to fly back and forth after he changes, its how easily he can be around humans. Which is variable." "So I'll be alone for my birthday?" "You can celebrate it a day or two later, surely?" That was Ingrid's contribution, she had been fairly quiet at his side the whole time til now. "I guess. So, how do we do this?" "Go home, get some sleep and pack up your stuff. We'll come and get you after dark."

By now the sun was in the sky, trapping he and Ingrid in the guild until evening. Having no such problem, Adam left with his human family. With no distracting presences, the two of them stared at each other, the halted conversation rearing up in the silence. "Don't. This isn't the time, or place." Biting back an angry retort, Vlad nodded in agreement. "Another one. First Wolfie, then Malik, now Adam. What next, illegitimate daughters?" "Don't. I don't need more competition." Shrugging at Ingrid, Vlad pulled out a soya bottle to drink. "I saw them off, checked their address is right. What are you two going to do for the day?" "I would say sleep, but I don't see Ingrid sleeping in a building full of slayers." The look on her face was agreement, his words accurate. "Fair enough. Want to do some slayer training then?" "What?" Jonno indicated for them to follow, so Vlad took another swallow and corked his bottle back up.

"Weapons down!" A row of teenagers, each holding stakes or UV guns, lowered their weapons in the training room. "Switch to rubber." The teenagers did so, making Vlad relax somewhat. "This is Vlad and Ingrid, so if you bear a real weapon in front of them you'll be expelled from the guild. Want to play vampire or slayer?" Amused, Vlad opted to be slayer while Ingrid chose vampire. "What is this nonsense?" "Training. Everyone watch Vlad. Vlad, no powers. Try to slay Ingrid." Ingrid smirked at Vlad being banned from using his powers as he took the foam stake (rubber was for higher levels), and the two squared up to each other. Knowing it was the only way to start, he lunged at Ingrid. She predictably jumped out of his way, landing behind him - he couldn't turn off natural senses. Turning, Vlad felt his fangs drop as the fight instinct took over and he attacked, just fast enough to pin Ingrid with the foam stake at her throat.

"No powers and I still got you!" Vlad moved up soon after, Jonno wouldn't believe "its not what it sounds like" if Vlad got an inappropriate response to Ingrid beneath him. Ingrid stood up scowling, and now it was a case of reputation as she took the stake. Vlad was faster, stronger, infinitely more powerful than his sister, but he had a huge disadvantage - he didn't want to hurt her. Ingrid didn't care either way, if they offered her a real stake Vlad was prepared to bet she would have taken it. "Ready?" Rather than go straight to speeding, Vlad took a step back out of range, waiting for Ingrid to jump at him before he moved behind her. "Lost something? Oh yes, your powers." Ingrid wasn't slow, even at human speed as she whipped around to get him, it was close. Vlad could have won both rounds, but he realised he didn't want to embarass her. Landing behind her again, Vlad gripped her hair and turned her head, exposing her throat like a vampire would a victim. The sight was more enticing than it should have been, and Ingrid was quick to jam the foam into his gut with a quick jab.

"How was that?" "Not bad for a pair of biters." "I suppose that's a compliment from a room of newbie slayers." Ingrid refused to meet his eyes, handing the stake back to Jonno and politely requesting - demanding - blood. "Donated it myself." Ingrid took the bag, challenging the slayers watching with her eyes as she stuck a straw in it and sat down to drink. "Don't mind me, carry on trying to slay my brother. My favourite form of entertainment." Needing the distraction from staring at Ingrid and thinking of biting, Vlad volunteered happily. They called time after an hour, and Vlad was bruised and uncomfortable around so many stakes, even if they couldn't hurt him, and gladly dropped into a seat to drink his soy. "You're in a room full of slayers, a building even, who donate their blood. And you drink veggie?" Amy, the pregnant slayer girl, sat down next to him. "I don't want to drink human, even if its not from deaths." "You're strange, you know that?" "I do. But since I may be the closest you get to your kids father, is it not a good thing all vampires aren't alike?" "Maybe so."

Antsy and tired by the time night began to fall so they could leave, Vlad got the address and directions from Jonno. "The guild will check in every other night, I'll be sure to account for your VHC meetings." "I get it, he's still technically human so you guys gotta check he's safe. Until next time." "Vlad?" Jonno looked around as his voice dropped, checking nobody was listening in. "You and Ingrid?" "It really isn't like that, it's literally to stop dad trying to marry either of us off." Vlad felt guilty, he was lying about his own feelings to someone who he genuinely considered a true friend. "Really?" "Really. We gotta go, but honestly, it's not what it sounded like. Look at her, do you really think of all the vampires in the world, Ingrid is going to choose her brother?" "Fair point. No offence." "None taken. See ya mate." He and Jonno shook hands, and Vlad waited outside for Ingrid so they could leave.

"What was that about?" "Assuring Jonno our engagement is for show, not substance." Her look was blank, devoid of deeper emotion as they shifted to their bat forms and headed towards Adam's home. Knocking on the door, Vlad felt bad for the brother they had only just met, for having to take him away from his family. "Hey you two!" The little sister, George, smiled brightly at them as though she didn't know they were dangerous night hunters. "Why are you just standing there?" "You have to invite us in." "Oh. Come on in!" Stepping through the door, Vlad could feel this was a happy family home and felt even guiltier as he was directed up stairs to Adam. "Ready to go?" "This minute?" "No, just making sure you're packed." Adam nodded, and it was still a little eerie to face someone who looked so much like him. "Do vampires eat? Mum got pizza, it's my favourite." "We do, but not generally pizza. However, I'm the same. Unless you know, it's got garlic on." "Nope, George said the smell would bother you." "Smart kid."

Adam smiled, holding up a photo of he and George as younger children. Even back then, it could have been a picture of Vlad. "Scarily so, she's a genius. And pretty fearless. Mum asked if you guys scared her, she said she thought it was cool. Said if I didn't choose to go human again, she expected me to turn her so she could fly and get fangs. Mum was not happy." "She sounds like some friends I had years ago. Brother and sister who knew about us, the sister was a genius and her brother wanted me to turn him." "What happened to them? Your face doesn't say good." Vlad sighed, still missing them. "I had to wipe their memories of me, or Ingrid and dad would have been killed. It wasn't a good time. Come on, pizza will get cold." Adam followed him back downstairs, dumping a bulky backpack by the door. "I'm used to living out a backpack, George loves camping."

Ingrid stood back, but George was indeed fearless and kept offering Ingrid pizza until she took it "just to shut the irritating breather child up". "How do we stay in touch with him? Not sure his phone will work in Romania." Vlad held up his slayer guild issue phone. "I'll give you this number, it's the same way the slayers will check up on us with him. If it's urgent, we can be back here in an hour or so but I can't just drop everything easily, I will bring him back after his birthday though, I know that's important." Vlad traded numbers with Sally, and gave her Jonno's number so she could check in with them that Adam was ok if she didn't trust the phone calls. "Are you sure about this Adam?" Adam nodded as he hugged his mother and sister. "I can't live with not knowing whats going to happen to me, and I don't like the sound of my anger issues and stuff getting worse around you two. I'll be back, I promise. Love you short stuff." George shoved at her big brother, then hugged him tightly again. "Love you too pale face."

"Lets go before my mum changes her mind. It's a good job we look so alike, otherwise she wouldn't believe you." "It was nice meeting you both, I'm sure we'll see each other again." Vlad lifted Adam's bag onto his back, easier to transport that way. "How are we going?" "Flying. It'll feel strange, but I promise it's safe." Adam didn't look wholly convinced, but Bertrand had trained Vlad in tandem transformations before his power boost at eighteen, this would be easy. "Ready?" "As I'll ever be." Vlad put his arms around Adam's waist - they had to be touching for this to work - and jumped. The trip to Transylvania was as quick as ever, though Adam looked a little green as they landed in the castle. "I really hope that feels less horrendous as a vampire." "It does, it's just harder on a human body." Having flitted with Erin when she was human, Vlad knew that much. "Can I call my mum? She said she wouldn't sleep until she knew I got here safe."

"Of course. I'll go sort your room out, you take whatever time you want." Handing over his phone, Vlad dropped Adam in the living room and lit a fire. "That's Zoltan, he might talk. He won't hurt you." Adam gave him a very confused look, but then so did Zoltan. "Master Vlad, were you cloned?" "Zoltan, this is Adam. He's our brother and he's going to be staying here a while. Adam, this is Zoltan. About as lethal as a fluffy cushion, no matter what he says." Zoltan growled but quieted at Vlad's look, then wheeled himself away out of the room. Thankful for his speed, Vlad moved his things from the side room into "their" room, leaving Adam's bag next to the single coffin and bracing himself to stay in the coffin he and Ingrid had... shared. Her dresses still hung in the wardrobe, looking strange next to all his clothes that weren't black. His books came with him, and the room looked oddly empty with just the coffin in there. Still, Adam could make it his own.

Dropping back to the room he had left him in, he found Adam staring into the fire. "How do you accept something like this?" "I didn't for a long time, I never wanted to be a vampire. But I am, and it's not all bad I guess." Adam handed his phone back, thanking him for the usage. "Your room is next to mine, you have space and your own bathroom. There's a library and a training room, which you're welcome to use. I would say don't play with the weapons until I show you how though. I'm sorry, I know this can't be easy." "It's to keep mum and George safe, that's all the motivation I need. I guess we should talk, get to know each other? Since we're brothers, and kind of scarily identical." "Sure, just let me go grab a drink. We don't really do breather stuff, but I can offer you tea or blood orange juice." Adam stood and followed him to the kitchen, making himself tea and sitting at the table opposite Vlad. "So, where do we start?"

-YD-

 **I feel like Adam moving was rushed, but I tried to write it over more time and it just didn't fit somehow. So lets go with impulsive Adam?**


	13. Eyes

**Don't own.**

 **I was a good little bat and did some work on my other stories before I came back to this - But unless you follow my other stories that hardly matters to you.**

 **On we go!**

-YD-

The two boys sat talking for hours, drinking and learning the others early years. Adam tapped the side of his empty mug, looking more at ease in spite of them both being tired. "So. Can I ask about the whole engagement thing?" Vlad nodded, pouring himself more soy. "Our father tried to marry Ingrid off when she was fifteen, our mother tried when she was sixteen. When I was seventeen, I was dating a human girl and ended up literally seconds away from marrying the vampiress my father pushed me into binding with. Right before Ingrid and I 'got engaged', dad was trying again to marry her off. There's an old legal loophole, it let me file a contract claiming Ingrid as my betrothed. We have five years from the filing date to marry, or in reality, it bought Ingrid time to find someone she wants, that she chooses. She risked her life for mine, I owed her big."

"So everyone else thinks you intend to marry your sister, and that's okay?" Vlad shrugged, he didn't know up from down when it came to Ingrid anymore. "Everyone was surprised, our dad thinks it is what it actually is, but he's the main one we had to convince. Ironic really." "So, you live as brother and sister but everyone else thinks you what, share a coffin?" "Pretty much." Adam lapsed back to silence, prodding at his stomach and laughing at the slushy-sound of a lot of tea. Robin used to do that too. "Can I ask What happened to the human girl you dated? I don't see another girl here." "The vampire I almost married, she killed her. I turned her, against her will and we've been estranged ever since she left with our other brother, after they all tried to kill me, Ingrid and dad." "Are all vampire families this confusing and twisted?" Vlad couldn't help grin a little, Adam was so new to it all. "Only on the days that end in Y."

Feeling the hairs on the back of his neck prickle, Vlad knew that meant the sun was rising soon. Adam rubbing the back of his neck surprised him. "Prickly?" "Yeah, I feel it when I'm outside sometimes." "Sunlight. We're nocturnal, and neither me or Ingrid slept yesterday, so I'll show you the library and your room, then you can sleep or entertain yourself. I will just ask you not to leave the castle, the guild will have my dust if you get lost in Transylvania." "I get it. They don't trust vampires with humans, even if there's a peace thing?" "Basically. Come on." Vlad led Adam around, human pace so he could remember the way as he pointed out the library, training room and finally his new bedroom. "Your stuff is in there, and your coffin. That's your space, I won't come in unless you ask me to or if I think you're in immediate danger - unlikely. I'm right next door, and Ingrid sleeps way down in the crypt. Any questions?" His brother looked more than a bit overwhelmed, but shook his head. "Not right now. I think I should sleep, try to get my head around all this."

Adam entered his bedroom, closing the door behind him and Vlad heard him opening his bulky backpack. Leaving the teen to make the space his own, Vlad made a side trip to Zoltan - he trusted Adam, but worried the boy may forget how dangerous it would be if he woke up lost and confused - and asked the hell hound to guard the front doors for the day, and howl his sawdust out if Adam tried to escape. "And how will I know it's him and not yourself master Vlad?" "Well I'm not going to to out in the day?" "Ah, true. Very well, I shall play guard wolf. For today." Scratching the thick fur until Zoltan sighed in happiness, Vlad thanked his 'pet' and left for his own room. Changing out of the clothes he had been in for a couple of nights now, he indulged in a minute long speedy shower and pulled on sleepwear.

Clicking his fingers to open the coffin, Vlad leapt back in surprise. "Blood and garlic Ingrid, you scared the unlife out of me. Why are you in my coffin? Hellfire, why are you in my room?" Ingrid sat up, still awake and looking at him. "I don't really know, I just felt like being here." "Want me to leave you to it, I can take a guest one?" She shook her head, indicating the other half of the coffin. Climbing into it, Vlad felt on edge but if Ingrid was feeling lonely, she would never admit it out loud. They both lay down and Vlad clicked the lid closed, trying to fight the memories of last time. Hyperaware of her only inches away from him, Vlad closed his eyes and hoped he could just fall asleep. He felt her fingers tentatively wrap around his, returning the minute pressure so she knew he was awake. What he imagined was the closest a vampire could feel to adrenaline fuelled heart-racing filled his chest, thrumming with ancitipation and nerves as Ingrid moved to kneel over him.

Vlad didn't dare open his eyes, barely even moving as her lips pressed to his. The hand not holding his slid in to his hair, scratching lightly over his scalp and drawing pathetic sounds from him. Ingrid kissed him over and over, and Vlad was terrified to break the moment but couldn't stop his body responding to her, especially when he kissed her back until she whimpered against his lips again. As they broke apart, panting and gasping breaths warmer than usual filling the space between them, Vlad looked up at Ingrid's bright eyes in the darkness. "Why?" He knew he was risking her leaving, but after the way she looked at him last time, he had to know. "I don't know." She kissed him again, stealing any remnants of coherent thought as her hands moved to slide under his shirt. Shaking with want, desire hot in his veins, Vlad forced their mouths apart. "If you're going to regret this tomorrow then stop, I can't live with myself if you keep regretting me."

Ingrid's nails dug into his chest, bodies pressing tighter together. "I won't." Part of his mind wasn't sure, but Vlad had tried and that was the limit of his strength as she bit his lip, pushing his shirt up and off then biting down on his throat. "You better heal that" Vlad managed to breathe out, Adam would run a mile if he thought this was happening, especially after spending so long telling him it was all technicalities. He shivered as Ingrid's tongue smoothed over the mark, feeling the bite heal over but it was burned into his mind forever. This time he went slower, stripping her and mapping her skin with his hands, his mouth and Ingrid shook under the contact. It was obvious she had planned this, condoms hidden under her head-pillow as they joined, twining tightly and Vlad couldn't get enough of her, just like the last time.

Afterwards, Vlad waited to see what she would do this time, the same soft kiss pressed to his mouth but this time she kept their fingers laced together as they lay down to sleep. Ingrid was gone when he woke again, but the faint tingle on his neck (which he checked with his fingers for scarring - none) told him it wasn't a dream. Showering the encounters from his skin, Vlad dressed and leaned in to Adam's door - he was still in there. Ingrid wasn't in the kitchen when he went to get a drink, chewing mindlessly on toast and contemplating if it was worth seeking her out. Deciding against it immediately, he relinquished Zoltan of his post at the front door and the hound wheeled himself to his basket, tipping himself over to take a nap. Clicking his fingers to light a fire, Vlad stretched out along the sofa and stared into the flames.

Adam was the first to appear, and Vlad almost panicked when he thought the boy was staring at his neck, but it turned out he was looking at Zoltan in his basket behind him. "Your stuffed dog has a dog basket?" "Well where else is he supposed to sleep? Speaking of, how did you sleep?" Adam shrugged, dressed much like Vlad in casual t-shirt and jeans, a loose jacket hanging open over it and canvas shoes on his feet. "Alright I guess, took a while to drift off trying to get my head around everything. You?" "Fine, like the dead in fact." Adam looked at him oddly, then broke into a smile. "Funny." "So, what do you want to do? Food? Training? Library? Stare longingly into the fire like a true dramatic Dracula? Run away screaming?"

His newly discovered brother looked around for a minute, thinking. "Food I guess, that pizza was basically a whole day ago. And I'm not tea-belly anymore." "Yeah, I had a friend who did that. Come on, kitchen. Any allergies I should know about?" "Hay fever is as exotic as I get." "That will go when you change, you'll only be allergic to sunlight, garlic and pointy wood." The two headed to the kitchen, and Adam looked through the cupboards with a confused face. "You guys eat this stuff?" "Your taste buds will change, it may have already started. You can make toast if you aren't feeling brave for now, and we can go pick stuff you feel less terrified of if you want." Adam made himself tea and toast, Vlad stuck with soya and a protein bar (he tried not to think about how it was made from pigs blood).

"Can you tell me about your... Our father?" "Sure. Count Dracula, had two brothers, one dead. You are the fourth of his children, that we know about anyway. His bark is far worse than his bite, goes on about carnage and chaos when he's secretly a breather loving old man who likes reading cheesy books and tv soap operas." "Breather?" "Oh. Human." Adam nodded in acceptance, chewing on the last of his toast and drinking his tea. "Your mother, she's a vampire?" "Yep, but she and dad split when I was little, she drifts in and out of our lives when she wants something. Haven't seen her in a year or so, she left dad for a werewolf, she has a son with him. I miss Wolfie, but I don't miss her." "I hope Wolfie is the son, not the one she left you for." Vlad smiled and nodded. "Yeah, he's a sweet kid. You wouldn't know he was half vampire, half werewolf, and he idolizes Ingrid. She loves him too, but she'll deny it and threaten you with garlic or a sunbed if you accuse her of such things."

"Damn right I would, I'm already plotting your demise." His heart leapt in his chest a little at the sound of her voice, but he kept his face and tone even, sarcastic. "Always nice to feel the love from your future wife." Ingrid slapped the back of his head as she passed to the fridge for a chilled bottle. "Don't look so worried Adam, it's kind of a running joke." "You keep blood in the fridge?" "Its like wine, some are meant to be enjoyed cold, some warm, some either way." Adam watched as Ingrid sipped from her glass, the thick red liquid clinging to the sides. "And that's... That's from dead people?" "Older bottles will be, we have donation based supplies now but the cease-fire is in its infancy, I'm changing the future but I can't change the past."

"But you're serious, about peace and protecting humans?" "Completely. Vampires need blood, and slayers keep us in check, but we don't need to annihilate each other to live together." "Good garlic, its like listening to you talk to your conscience. He even looks like you." Ingrid was surveying the two of them, leaning up against the counter and Vlad had to stop himself openly staring, demanding to know what she was thinking about the morning spent intimately connecting with him. But none of that could be said in front of Adam, so Vlad kept a lid on it all and let Adam form his own opinions. "I don't know how much he looks like me now, I haven't seen my reflection in over two years." "He's shorter and there's some of the breather woman in his face, but at a glance you could be identical twins. Except the hair, his is a bit wavy like his sister, Draculas have straight hair."

The brothers looked at each other, and it would likely never stop being strange practically seeing himself in this half-ling. "Do the others look like any of you?" "Wolfie looks a little like us, except when he has four legs and a tail. Malik looks nothing like us, at all. Only one related to us I've seen with brown eyes." That comment from Ingrid sparked something in Vlad's memory, hazy from the screaming and running for his life. "Ingrid. Didn't Elisabetta have blue eyes too?" His sisters eyes widened, and Vlad could practically see her searching her memory. "I take it our father doesn't have brown eyes either?" "Nope, Dracula trait for three generations - all blues. You still have Bertrands bloodline books?" Vlad nodded, darting to his bookshelf and back in seconds. "That was fast." "Vampires are fast, you'll get used to it." Vlad flicked through the book, wishing he had paid more attention to it when Bertrand had held it in front of his eyes. "Look at this." Ingrid leant next to him, scanning the information. "Hang on, 1400? That would make him... 612. That means Malik not only isn't our brother, he's older than dad?"

-YD-

 **I'm going on the book Bertrand showed Vlad when he was proving Elisabetta was alive, Malik's year of birth is 1400 in that book?**


	14. Stop

**Nope, still don't own the characters. It saddens me.**

 **I'm supposed to be sleeping, or at least working on the start of a sequel story but oops I'm here again!**

 **On we go!**

-YD-

"Sorry, how do you not know someone is older than they say they are?" Adam looked perplexed. "Malik still looks like a teenager, vampire aging is scarcely predictable. Oh blood, ew. Erin was only seventeen, that's even worse than you and Ramanga." Vlad cringed as Ingrid scowled, remembering the garlic-awful flirting. "Go stake yourself, that was only about getting on the High Council. Which I have since accomplished. Let's not forget this ones mother was only eighteen when she met dad." The intense moment of discovery was broken by Vlad's phone ringing. "Hey Jonno. Yes, he's still alive, we have not eaten him. Here." Adam took the phone warily, but assured the slayers guild everything was fine and the two Draculas were being perfectly friendly with him - which raised Ingrid's eyebrow in a "really?" gesture.

Grinning, Vlad chatted back and forth with Jonno about the cease-fire a little more, then hung up. "Doesn't this mean that slayer girls baby isn't our niece or nephew?" "Bats, yeah. Let's not bring that up yet, the girls already a little terrified." "You think lying to her is better?" "Until we have a clue who Malik's father is, yes. Because Malik is the last Vaccaria, I don't see him telling us where to find their blood mirror. If it comes to it, we can add her kid to ours." Ingrid looked less than impressed, but she seemed to have given up arguing with him about cease fire stuff. "What's a blood mirror?" "A mirror linked to a vampire bloodline. You're of Dracula blood, when you turn sixteen we stick you in front of it and weird stuff happens, then you come out a vampire." "Oh, is that all?" "We think so. Neither of us had conventional experiences." Ingrid scowled again at Vlad saying that, as though hers was worse.

"How so?" "Well Ingrid ran away from the mirror for about a day, I avoided my reflection for about a year and a half. Neither of which we would actually recommend. Best to get it over with." "I thought you said I had to turn into a vampire." Vlad sipped on his glass, trying to choose his words. "You can dodge your reflection, but you'll still be a vampire. No sunlight, no garlic, fear of pointy wood but you'll have no powers. You get the choice when you're eighteen, why not have a couple of years flying and fireballs?" Adam nodded, and sat quietly thinking about his future. Vlad could feel Ingrid's eyes on his neck, and he wished right now he could see for certain there was nothing there, even though Adam had said nothing and Vlad couldn't feel anything. The curse of having no reflection. Scratching his neck absent mindedly, Vlad indicated for Adam to follow him and led them away from Ingrid's dark gaze.

"You don't have to read these, obviously. The whole library is open for you to look through, but these ones here are about what will happen to you as a vampire." Adam's eyes were wide as he looked at the huge books, and he looked up at Vlad. "What are you going to be doing?" "I need to meditate, then check my Council paperwork. If you need me, just knock on my door - don't come in until I say, meditation is for keeping control over my powers so I don't want to risk you getting hurt." The halfling nodded again, he did that alot, pulling a book towards himself and starting.

Flitting up to his room, Vlad looked at the coffin Ingrid had pressed herself against him in twice now. Sighing, he closed the lid and sat cross legged on top of it. Dropping into his mild trance state slowly, Vlad focused on keeping his powers under wraps, imagining a barrier between the raw energy and the outside world - like his skin was armour that kept everyone safe from him. Slowly coming back to awareness, Vlad noticed the door was knocking. "Come in?" Expecting Adam, he was surprised to see Ingrid. "Heard you tell the half breed not to get himself killed, figured I would be careless if I didn't at least knock." Stretching as he stood back up, Vlad tried not to get distracted by memories. "Right. What can I do for you Ingrid?" "Now who's acting weird?" Pushing his door closed and sitting at his desk, Vlad shrugged. "After last time, I'm allowed to be wary." "Didn't stop you." Ingrid was right, no amount of rational thought could stop him shivering inwardly as he thought of her.

"At least I've admitted I want you. You just jump me then disappear." He watched as Ingrid shook her head, rubbing at the side of her jaw - he knew she held tension there when she was upset, angry or a little bit murderous. "What do you want?" "That's a very loaded question. I'll settle for you telling me where I stand. Am I just a convenience for when you want... contact, or are you going to keep pretending that wasn't mindblowing and I get to wait until you come back?" "Both. Neither. I don't know. Vlad, this is wrong and we shouldn't... It needs to stop." Darting to stand right in front of her, Vlad leaned in closer. "Then tell me to stop. I gave you that chance both times before." Ingrid didn't back away, didn't tell him to stop as he closed the distance. Her hands slid up his chest, resting on his shoulders and he kissed her. Despite his refusal to call this 'wrong', he still stepped back guiltily when the door knocked again. Ingrid stayed where she was, eyes bright but face otherwise blank of expression.

Mastering his body somewhat, Vlad sat back at his desk and pulled out a piece of parchment. "Come in?" Adam pushed the door open, looking surprised to see Ingrid. "We're just discussing council stuff, don't worry. You alright?" "Got bored reading, kind of hoped you would show me how to find the training room again, this place is huge!" Pushing his work aside, Vlad stood and smiled at his brother. "Sure, lets go." Adam turned away, and Vlad looked at Ingrid, feeling his stomach twist when she shook her head. Leading the boy down, he watched as Adam examined the weapons hung on the wall. "Are they real?" "Yep. We have practice ones, foam and rubber so you can learn motions, then weight, then safety. All while learning how to behead a three headed killer monkey effectively." "Excuse me?" "Dad and alchemy... Never again." Vlad shuddered in memory, those monkeys had been so loud. "Alchemy? Actually, never mind. I don't want to know."

Chuckling, Vlad walked Adam through everything in the training room and explained what was what. "And you use all this?" "Yep. Its a good way to destress when you run a whole race." Zoltan wheeled himself in then, informing Vlad there were two bats at the door. "Thanks Zoltan. I better go see who that is." Zipping down, one of the bats was his clothing order delivery. The other was an invitation to another vampires Hunt Ball - not so aptly named now the hunting peasants part was banned. "Why invite a bloody betrothed couple? Ingrid!" The vampiress in question landed in the doorway, boredly brushing her hair and catching Vlad's attention for a minute before he remembered why he called her. "What?" Holding out the invitation and floating his new attire at his side, Vlad waited for her to read it. "Why invite betrothed couples? I assume we have to go?" "Wouldn't be seemly to not go, especially when we refuse to host our own balls."

"What about the half breed?" Vlad couldn't help smirking. "I still have some of Erin's stasis spray, how much fun will it be to put a fake crown on him and see what happens when we walk in?" Ingrid matched his smirk, ever loving to plot some kind of deviance. "Since you banned the fun part of a Hunt Ball, thats as exciting as it will get." "Better mentally prepare him, can't have him outing the fake engagement." Plucking the letter from Ingrid's hand, Vlad whooshed off without waiting for an answer to drop off his clothes, then seek out Adam. "A Hunt Ball?" "It's like speed dating for vampires. A guy invites loads of others, and any single vampiress is a potential future wife. You up for it?" "Are they not going to notice I have a pulse?" "We have something for that. Or I'll wear surge spray, and we can both have a pulse." Adam looked back down at the invite, then himself.

"Not sure I have suitable clothes." "I've got a spare cape, and I'll take your measurements to get some formal stuff made up for you. Assuming you want to come?" "It does sound kind of fun, if a little weird." It was a little awkward asking his teen brother to strip down a little to take his measurements, but Adam laughed and pointed out it was literally nothing he couldn't see by looking down - they were practically carbon copies. "You a shoes or boots guy?" "Either or." Adam was a little wary of Vlad automatically saying he would buy stuff, until Vlad pointed out it wasn't really an issue when he was the Grand High Vampire. "I'll go sort this tomorrow night, you can call your mum and have a good talk with her if you like then. I want to keep you out of sight before the party, it'll be more fun that way." A hint of Dracula mischief shone through his brother then, joining in Vlad's amusement at the 'plot'.

"The other thing is - me and Ingrid have to act like a normal couple, no bringing up that we spend most of our time apart here and that we aren't actually planning to get bound." "Is... Will our father be there?" "It's a distinct possibility. You'll recognise him, long hair and making a fool of himself." They stopped for a late lunch, and Adam gamely tried the 'soup' without asking what was in it. "As bad as you expected?" "No, surprisingly good. I still don't want to know what it was." Given that it contained badger blood as a flavouring, Vlad thought that was a good idea. "Will I have to dance at this ball? Because I cannot dance." Chuckling, Vlad had a similar issue only a few months ago. "Me and Ingrid will, you don't have to unless some confused vampiress asks, unsure if you're me or not. I can teach you if you're feeling brave." "Sure, I could do with a laugh, me teaching myself to dance." Draining his glass and floating things to the dishwasher (vampires liked convenient technology, they just had a habit of breaking them), Vlad led Adam back to the training room - it had the most space.

Ingrid found them laughing heartily as they stumbled over each other, giving them a look of disdain. "What the blood and garlic are you doing? I can't even tell you apart when you're giggling." "Having a sing along, what does it look like?" Ingrid had a smirk twitching at the side of her mouth when Vlad brought up their kidnap by Van Helsing, it had ended quite funnily all in all. "Adam can't dance, I didn't think you would appreciate teaching us both. Plus you're allergic to happy fun." Adam yelped in surprise when Ingrid tossed a fireball at them, though Vlad simply ducked and tossed one back. "Hey! Flammable teen here!" "Get behind the punch bag, you'll be fine." Adam hurried to hide, just in time for Ingrid to light a circle of fire around Vlad's feet. "Is that the best you've got?" Vlad waved his hand to put it out, throwing his zone light out but intentionally missing widely. "Now thats just playing dirty!" Laughing as Ingrid tried to hit him with lightning, he dodged and saw the burn marks in the wall behind him. "That wall had been untouched for centuries!" "Much like the cells in your brain coffin breath."

He vaguely registered Adam watching them with wide, mildly fearful eyes as he and Ingrid sped around the room, tossing attacks back and forth until Vlad managed to get behind her, pinning her to the wall and trying to remember they had an audience. "You lose!" Ingrid shivered slightly but then pushed him off, both panting and laughing breathlessly through their fangs. "Are you two mad?" "That is neither here nor there, sometimes board games just don't pass the time. And it's good to spar a little now and then." The half-ling slowly reappeared from his hiding spot, looking at the grinning vampires and burn marks on the walls. "Sparring... Right. Think I'll stick to chess." "We can do that. There's a pile of board games in the living room, but Ingrid requires intense bribery to even pretend to play." The sister in question slapped the back of his head, then disappeared off to do whatever it was she did.

"So. Dinner?" His brother looked at him in surprise, then nodded - they had been fooling around with the dancing for a few hours. "Then we can play chess before daybreak if you like." Adam stood quietly for a moment, silence building until Vlad got a bit worried. "You ok Adam?" "If I go back to being human when I'm eighteen... Will you still be my brother?" "Of course. Why do you ask?" "I always wanted a brother. George is awesome and I love her to pieces, but I was just worried I would get attached to having new siblings and then you would be gone." Offering his brother a short squeeze on the shoulder, Vlad smiled. "We're brothers. I can't speak for anyone else, but you're family to me now. So don't worry. Now come on, time for you to look scared the kitchen will bite again." Adam finally perked up at that, and Vlad sincerely hoped the boy would always want to be his brother, human or vampire choice aside. Adam turned out to be much better than Vlad at chess, and he was reminded of Robin again. Adam and Robin would have got on pretty well, Vlad missed his old best friend dearly.

"I want to shower before bed, I still smell like smoke from your little firefight earlier." Adam finished trouncing him on the board again, then headed up to his room with a smile. Tidying up the board and pieces, Vlad bid Zoltan goodnight and headed up himself. Checking his VHC payment card was with Adams clothing measurements, he hung his clothes over the back of his desk chair and resolved to actually do the paperwork he meant to when he got back the next night. Whipping around as he heard his door close, he was almost relieved to see it was Ingrid - Adam may have been confused by Vlad's still-healing back. "Something wrong?" She didnt answer, just stepped closer and pushed at his shoulder until he turned around. Feeling a little vulnerable with his back to her, Vlad supposed it showed how much he trusted Ingrid right now.

The first touch of her mouth on the scratches she made in his skin made him gasp, the next making him shiver as Ingrid essentially healed the physical damage she had done to him. Hands wrapped around his hips, touch gentler than he expected from Ingrid even now. "Tell me to stop." It was usually him that said that, so her breathless whisper surprised him. "Why? Because you want to, or because you think you should?" Ingrid's hands moved him back around, those bright eyes burning into his again. "I'm not going to tell you to stop. I just want to know what this is to you." Rationality this close to Ingrid now wasn't easy, even less so when her hand slid around his neck, pulling his mouth to hers. This wasn't gentle, not when her fangs nipped at his mouth and she pushed him backwards, both scrambling into the coffin and conversation fell away with Ingrid's clothes and his inhibitions. Ingrid might try to say this was wrong, but the look in her eyes as she guided him into place was all desire, burning heat and Vlad refused to think past these moments now.

-YD-

 **I know I said this wouldn't revolve around Vlad and Ingrid misbehaving, and it won't! Just bear with me on this.**


	15. Social

**Nope. Don't own.**

 **Basically, I want to get this finished before I start a new story - the sequel to Adams Story/Vl-Adam-Ir - but there's a fair bit of this to go, so I'll probably just continually write this until it's done, maybe breaking to write some of Chosen Two or Lazarus Rising.**

 **On we go!**

-YD-

Vlad tried to stay awake this time, knowing Ingrid would wake before him and bolt again, but as he clung to her sleeping form he couldn't keep his eyes open. Which meant he overslept, and Ingrid was indeed gone when he woke. Showering and pulling on his clothes, he forced the feelings aside and loitered in the kitchen waiting for Adam to find him there. "No morning fireballs right?" "It's clear, unless you count this." Vlad clicked the candles out, and Adam walked into the table with a grunt. "Sorry." Clicking them back on, Adam looked around in wonder. "That's pretty cool." "Pretty basic actually, you'll be able to do that no problem." Adam looked down at his hands, clearly unsure. "So I just do this" he clicked, and the candles went out. "Oh. Whoops." Chuckling, Vlad clicked them back on. "Random things will happen as your transformation gets closer. My cousin used to sleep fly. Ingrid broke a door, set fire to dads new throne and woke up upside down a few times. I set fire to Zoltan, and had weird dreams. Oh, and kept craving raw meat. That was pretty grim."

His brother cringed, checking his breakfast was in fact cooked through. "And the bad temper?" "Transforming didn't change anything there for Ingrid, but you can learn to control it. Mostly. I have to confess, I have no clue how being half human will affect your personality, I just know it doesn't affect you physically as a vampire." They chatted through breakfast, then Vlad left Adam with his phone and flew off to order his clothes. "Back again your Grandness?" "My order was more than adequate, so I decided to outfit my new... friend out here too. I brought their measurements, they also need a few shirts, trousers and jackets - in black naturally. And some formal wear shoes and boots. It's all on the list." The wizened vampiress took the list, scanning it quickly. "Not a problem. I'll set up the delivery for a few nights from now, is that acceptable?" "Yes, thank you." Vlad paid the dust pile waiting to happen, then set off to stretch his wings a little more.

Adam was staring into the fire when he got back, handing his phone back with a thank you. "Ordered your stuff, it'll be here in a few days. You'll be the sharpest dressed half breed going." They played board games through the night, laughing and chatting and generally bonding like siblings. Nothing like the next few nights with Ingrid, where they bonded like no siblings should in the cocoon of their coffin. Ingrid still wouldn't answer him when he asked what was going on, and she was never there when he woke up again. When Adam's clothes arrived the night before the next council meeting, they dressed in matching outfits and Ingrid actually blinked in surprise. "Ok, thats terrifying. Nice touch on the height in his boots." "Shame we can't send a photo back to my mum and George, they would get a kick out of this." Adam was comparing his reflection to Vlad stood next to the mirror.

"Sorry, we can't change the lack of reflection." Fussing with his tie, Adam seemed to light up with an idea. "Does that mean digital photography doesn't work?" Vlad and Ingrid turned to each other then, remembering the incident with their mother. "Of course. Digital photography, remember her face when you showed her?" Adam looked between them, grinning. "I have a digital camera on my phone, and a proper one. George wanted me to take photos of the castle and stuff." "Well? What are you standing here for? Go get it!" The teen bounced off, clearly happy he had done something right. Ingrid avoided his eyes while they waited, fixed on the candle behind him - he could see it shining in her eyes. Adam came back, holding his mobile phone and an actual camera. "Here Ingrid, take a picture so Vlad can see how eerie the resemblance is!" Ingrid looked less than thrilled about being ordered around, but took the cameras anyway.

"How does this even work? Vampires don't really do mobile phones." "I get to teach you guys something? Awesome!" A minute later, Ingrid understood enough to use the two things without flaming them, and Vlad couldn't deny the picture could have been him twice. "That is pretty weird, especially when we are only half brothers. Mind you, we all look like dad a fair bit." Ingrid handed the camera stuff back to Adam, who winked and tossed them to Vlad before running and grabbing hold of Ingrid. Quick as possible, Vlad captures Ingrid's face of shock. The half human one of them was definitely more impulsive and boisterous than anyone raised by vampires. "Get off me you little cretin!" didn't deter Adam's smile in the slightest, demanding Vlad take a photo of him with Zoltan next. "He's far too excitable for a Dracula." "You can be too, he just doesn't try to hide it." Ingrid watched as Adam dashed out of the room to take more photos now he had been reminded, and Vlad was reminded of he and Ingrid chasing each other around Garside - he couldn't remember seeing her laugh like that any other time.

"Vampires don't do open and honest." "No kidding." She gave him a searching look, then flitted off away from him. Sighing to himself, Vlad schooled his face back to neutral as Adam came back smiling brightly. "That was fun, even when Zoltan threatened to eat my camera." "Don't annoy him too much, he's your only company for an hour and a half tomorrow night remember." "Yeah. Feels weird being left all alone in someone else's home." "You're a Dracula, it's your home too while you want it to be." That won him another smile from his brother, and a mumbled "thanks Vlad". "Come on, let's get changed and eat, then you can do some reading while I finish my Council work. And then you can lose horribly at Sluedo again." "You suck as a big brother, just saying." "Well I'm not going to bite you, if that's what you're thinking." Adam kept smiling, and Vlad loved seeing him look happy rather than scared and out of place. "Weird to think I met you less than a week ago." "Yeah, but family is family."

He trounced his brother at Sluedo, which meant Adam demanded a game of chess so he could go to bed on a win. As they parted ways for the day, Vlad felt a measure of guilt that Adam was happily bonding with his siblings in something of a lie. The guilt faded when Ingrid slid her hands under his shirt, desire replacing everything as she nipped his collarbone and pushed his jeans down. Nothing else seemed to matter as she moaned into his neck, muffling the sounds of pleasure he drew out of her as he traced fingers over her chest. Ingrid was addictive, every sound and touch made him burn hotter. As the haze of afterglow lifted, Ingrid asleep on his chest - after two nights of her moving there in her sleep, it was almost habit by now - Vlad felt guilty again knowing Ingrid thought what they were doing was wrong. He tried to tell himself the same, but in this moment nothing felt wrong other than knowing Ingrid couldn't accept it.

Blinking away tears, Vlad closed his eyes - they had the VHC that night, he needed sleep. He thought he was dreaming when Ingrid woke him, kissing him and straddling his waist again. Still waiting to wake up as they showered, Vlad kept pinching himself as he dressed and left for the kitchen - they had a facade to keep up with Adam. Or at least, thats what he told himself when she wouldn't look in his direction over breakfast. He checked Adam was alright on his own, made him promise not to freak out and try to escape, explained nobody could enter without an invitation and pointed out Zoltan wasn't too bad at chess either. "I'll leave you this to call your mum if you want, Jonno shouldn't call because he knows I'm in Council, but if he does then tell him I'll call back as soon as I am back." Adam thanked him, already challenging Zoltan to a game on their way to the living room as Vlad fastened his robes and picked up his crown. "I can't believe how much of a shift this week has been to last week."

Ingrid shrugged, still not meeting his eyes. "I didn't mean that. I meant Adam, and Malik." "Are you telling dad he's not a Dracula or am I?" "Neither, for now. If Malik finds out he will have nothing to lose. Dad would be dust in the flap of a wing." Eyeing his watch, he gestured to the door. "Ready?" "Let's go." Landing back at the VHC felt strange now, his whole life had shifted on it's axis in the last seven days. "Welcome back sir." "Thank you Roque. I trust you kept the place going as usual?" "Naturally." Still feeling daft as he carried his staff, Vlad was hyperaware of Morgan's eyes on Ingrid tonight. The top sheet of paperwork was a notice for the vampire network weekend - Vlad's idea of hell basically. Feeling a smirk curl over his mouth, Vlad suddenly had a job idea for Morgan when the weekend arrived. "Something funny your Grandness?" "Nothing to concern yourself with Jacob, just thinking to myself."

There was an updated list on the search for Lecushka brother offspring, most of them under the age of five and no sense turning their childhoods upside down. "Still, thats about half the list the second brother gave us." "What age are we considering telling them, assuming we find these older ones in time?" Tapping the pen against his book, Vlad thought back to his first real instances of powers. "Twelve, thats about the age hypnosis can first be learned, and by thirteen other things may flicker in and out. Any younger and we watch them until they are twelve. Then we go and tell them." As it was a council, that had to be voted on in agreement, and Morgan didn't raise his hand but Vlad had only needed a majority, not a unanimous vote. The older vampire scowled in his corner of the table, and Vlad kept the thought of Morgan reduced to handing out name tags and collecting capes at the networking weekend at the forefront of his mind - patience.

Ingrid didn't hesitate when he kissed her after adjourning the meeting, the other members of the council excusing themselves hurriedly. "What are you doing?" "Reinforcing 'us' before this hunt ball nonsense. Not to mention the networking weekend. Unless you've decided not to come?" "And miss being the first female ever invited? Unlikely." He kissed her again, mostly because he could right now before they went back home - there was irony. They settled back into the usual actions of their nights, and a month in to Adam staying with them there were two social calls - one the upcoming ball, the other a 'check in' with the slayers guild and Adam's mum and sister. "Has he met the Count yet?" Jonno was stood next to Vlad, giving the humans time alone in the next room. "No, we look so alike we decided it would be fun to make a splash at this vampire ball we have in a couple of days. He will be completely safe, I'll use stasis on him so nobody can tell us apart, and either me, Ingrid or Roque - my personal security guy - will be with him at all times. And he agreed to it."

"And that's how he will meet your father?" "Assuming dad goes, yeah. If he doesn't, I'll invite dad over to Transylvania. I would rather it happen on my playground than his, and as far away from Sally and George as possible at first." "Why?" "So Adam isn't worried about upsetting them, he can be open if he gets angry or starts flaming stuff." Jonno nodded in understanding, and the two chatted about the updates on dimidius hunting until Vlad's watch beeped. "We gotta go or we won't beat the sunrise." He didn't like separating Adam from the humans, but they promised to visit within the month if Adam wasn't too volatile and he seemed better for having seen them again. "Thanks for that. I miss them so much." "No problem, it must be rough missing them all the time." Adam stood still so Vlad could transform them, flying back to Transylvania just in time to beat daybreak.

"Food, then coffin time. That pizza seems like years ago!" Adam's appetite was starting to go up, his body needed the energy to keep going as it prepared for the change. And he said coffin time rather than bed time now, which may be an amusing readjustment if and when he returned to humanity. Making sure his brother was fed before sleep, Vlad went up to his own room. Ingrid didn't turn up every night, but it wasn't many she didn't and she still wouldn't talk about why. Vlad had given up asking, but he still hoped she would be there when he woke, and very very rarely, she was. Even then she wouldn't talk, just kiss him and touch him then disappear like she was never there to begin with.

Tonight he was alone, and it stung but Vlad knew if he pushed Ingrid, she would bolt. If there was anything long term in them, it had to be on her terms, her time table. If not... It didn't bear thinking about, Vlad was already hooked. Rolling on his side to look at Ingrids half of the coffin (even when she slept nearly on top of him, it was still her space whether he liked it or not), Vlad stared at it until he fell asleep. Waking up still alone, Vlad shrugged off the loneliness, showered and checked in with Ingrid about what colour they were wearing the next night. "Hmm... I've got a green corset I've had no cause to wear, what shades of green do you have?" Vlad hoped it was the dark green Ingrid wanted, the light green made his chest twist a little bit, the part of him that missed Erin the human.

Thankfully, it was the deep, forest green she chose, and Adam had the same outfit to wear as him. That was the extent of their conversation that night, and Ingrid didn't turn up in their- his coffin that morning either. Feeling a little antsy but keeping his cool for Adam's sake - he may be about to meet his father for the first time - Vlad showered, dried and dressed alone before knocking on Adam's door. "Come in." Pushing the door open, Adam smiled at Vlad's matching outfit. "I feel like we are identical twins who's mother dressed them the same right now. Except I can't get my hair to lie flat, how do you it without a mirror?" Chuckling as he helped Adam tame his slightly wavy hair into submission (Ingrid would have their heads if they turned up looking less than immaculate), Vlad took pity on the boy and answered. "You practice while you do have a reflection, that way you know what you're doing and how it should turn out. When in doubt though? Hats." Vlad held out the fake crown, and Adam knew not to take it off the whole time they were out, lest they get mixed up.

"Got your stake?" That was the guild's condition on Vlad taking Adam along - he had to be able to protect himself as he had no powers yet. "In my left boot. And Jonno even gave me this." Adam flipped his tie around, revealing a tiny UV torch in place of a tie pin at the back. "Nice. Be careful not to knock that, it could dust some bystander next to you." "So, Ingrid will introduce us as Vlad and Adam, and everyone gets to spend the whole night trying to work out who is who?" "Basically. If you aren't with me or Ingrid, you have to stay by Roque or Tollund - they won't know for sure you aren't me and wouldn't dare risk you." Spritzing stasis spray on Adam's neck, wrist and chest, they both stashed bottles in their pockets so it wasn't a giveaway, and Vlad had surge spray just in case. Pushing down on Adam's wrist, he grinned. "Congratulations, you feel dead. And it blocks out the sound of you breathing too, so just don't pant like a dog and you pass as a vamp. Hold down the fort Zoltan!" "Yes Master Vlad, Master Adam. Or the other way around, I cannot tell." "Perfect, that's just the look we were going for."

Ingrid joined them a few minutes later, handing Vlad a bottle of blood she thought sounded terrible. "This way, Vlad looks like an obliging guest and I get that bottle of tasteless trash out of our cellar." Ingrid explained to a confused Adam, and after slipping on their respective crowns, Vlad made sure he had their invite in his pocket and they flew off. Their entrance was hilarious, an entire room of utterly stunned vampires staring at the trio. Vlad dropped off the bottle they had brought to the table, and then they stood being the center of attention for a few minutes more until they were fighting laughter. "Oh please, don't stop dancing on our account." The party eventually staggered back into being, but it wasn't long before one of the VHC approached them. "Your Grandness? Or is it you? One of you is a fake!" Gesturing at Adam to copy, Vlad placed two fingers under the vampires chin and lifted him.

"Or, one of us is your leader and the other his brother, stood either side of a sister and a betrothed. I would really be careful with your words, wouldn't you brother dear?" "Very much so brother dear." Ingrid didn't need to say anything to make her point, just by standing between the two and smirking she was making a scene. They both stepped back to drop the vampire, who apologised and excused himself. For a while, nobody else was brave enough to approach them again which left them free to peruse the food and drinks table - there was a strawberry punch Vlad didn't mention had probably been mixed with leeches at some point, so Adam could be seen drinking something, and it was a good job Vlad hated maggots and didn't eat worms often, as Adam didn't look enthralled by any of them.

"So, Adam first, I'll trade over after. Everyone's expecting it to be me in the firing line and Adam under security." The other two nodded, so Vlad gestured to Roque to come hover nearby, and Ingrid simply said "look after this one" as she led Adam to the dance floor. The half-ling played sport, so with a bit of practice he turned out to be a fair dancer, already somewhat naturally coordinated. Roque spent a great deal of time looking between "The two Vlads", clearly trying to work out which was which. "At the end of the party, tell Ingrid which one you think is which and she will confirm or correct you." Vlad cut in for the dance with Ingrid, constantly reminding himself Adam hadn't kissed her so he couldn't either. Ingrid seemed to be thinking along the same lines, eyes dropping to his mouth occasionally but she didn't push further. In the interests of equal cover, both he and Adam stood at the sidelines, conversing quietly about vampire clans and who was who, though they both kept keen eyes on their sister while Roque did his rounds.

"Looks like she may be taking steps to use the time you gave her." Trying to act casual as he scanned the crowds, he saw what Adam meant. Ingrid was entitled to dance with others, just as they were but nobody knew who to approach without risking offending the Grand High Vampire. Vlad wouldn't be offended, but the three of them were the youngest in the room by at least a century - these were traditional vampires. Ingrid was dancing with one of the single vampires here shopping for a wife, and he was surprised by the hot spike of jealousy in his stomach as he watched Ingrid look up at the man. "Well, he would be the first she has shown any interest in, I doubt he's going to be "the one"." The vampire reminded him a little of both Will and Malik - probably Ingrid's 'type' to a T. Short, dark floppy hair, lean build and a somewhat charming smile he supposed. Almost his entire outfit was black, except a silver tie to match the silver accents on his waistcoat. What struck Vlad the most was that Ingrid's eyes were a little bright again, which he had only seen happen when they were... Close.

"You alright brother?" Shaking his head and hoping he hadn't looked a little murdeous, Vlad nodded. "Fine, just running through the list of potential suitors there are here to try and work out who that is." "Does it matter?" Facing the table while Adam faced away so nobody could see Vlad explaining clans, he elaborates. "If he's from a clan that are known to break rules, get in to trouble with the VHC alot or have any serious history of feuds, then yeah it kind of matters. I'm not going to tell her who she can't or can be interested in, just keeping a wary eye so nobody uses her to get to me. She deserves better than that." "I get you. Guess this is just a lot to take in." They clinked their glasses together, and Vlad could only imagine the bizarre image he made "toasting himself". As the night wore on, Ingrid danced with that same vampire two more times, after dancing with either Adam or himself. Which left Vlad feeling a mix of empty and full of guilt and jealousy. This was what he had set out to do, to let Ingrid find someone she wanted. If he was just a patch to pass the time until she found someone, he supposed he had little choice when he wasn't strong enough to deny her.

-YD-

 **Thanks to the new favorite/follower I got while writing this update! This ones for you!**


	16. Jealousy

**Oh look I'm back again!**

 **Genuinely surprised by how many people read this, I can't help but smile at the view counts spiking every day! I love you all dearly... Ok, maybe not love. Maybe I just won't drain you all dry. That sounds about right.**

 **On we go!**

-YD-

"How long do you think it will take for them to stop staring?" "I think some of them have at least clocked we are brothers, but I think only me, you and Ingrid know who is who." Adam chuckled into his glass, considerably more at ease in a room full of vampires than Vlad expected. But then, he was in no danger. "Even your security guy?" "I told him to ask Ingrid if he had worked it out right at the end. He's not brave enough to ask one of us in case he slights the Grand High Vampire by getting it wrong." "So, dad isn't here?" "No. Which surprised me, a lot of single women looking for a husband... Its his idea of a playground. Don't worry, I'll get him in front of you soon." "I know. I trust you." "Any other vampire would say that's a stupid thing to say. But I'm not most vampires, and I'm glad."

Vlad was especially thankful to Adam for keeping him grounded, so he wouldn't dust the vampire now conversing with a smiling, not even smirking, Ingrid on principle. "She looks happy enough. Isn't that bad for your reputation?" "Well I can't prove a point by kissing her, that would be a giveaway." Adam gave him a sideways look, and Vlad wondered how different their facial expressions were - they were learned, not genetics. "You've done that?" "Twice. The first time was Ingrid annoying dad, it was just for a second. The other was at Council, that was me getting rid of everyone because one of them is a little too interested. The first thing Ingrid did both times after was brush her fangs." "And you?" "I did too, I'm just less dramatic than her." Adam seemed to think about that for a minute, then grinned. "Think we can make a dramatic exit?"

"Are you thinking..." "Will she go for it?" Vlad looked over at Ingrid, and he wondered if the ultimate giveaway would be the desire in his eyes that Adam lacked. "Not stood in front of the guy she likes, but yeah, we can make a dramatic exit." Draining their goblets and sharing another grin, Vlad hoped Adam didn't fall for Ingrid too after this. That would get complicated. Not that he was falling, it was just physical. That's all. The twist in his chest when he looked at her now, or when he woke up alone, that didn't mean anything. "You in there brother? The night is starting to wind down." Shaking away his thoughts, Vlad nodded. "You go first, anyone else will assume it's me and if they were plotting, its me they want and so I should keep watch. Then I'll go, and we'll go." Adam nodded, and they waited for Ingrid to look over at them. The part of him that found the chaotic confusion at his and Ingrid's 'betrothal' was reigning now as he indicated his head to call her over, smirking so she knew there was a plan.

"Am I missing something?" She asked as she approached, and Vlad winked. "Just go with it." Adam was hesitant, but still grinning as he kissed Ingrid, and a few vampires turned to watch. Keeping one eye on the surroundings, Vlad now knew what it looked like to everyone else when they kissed in public places. Nobody tried to stake either of them, and when Adam let her go Vlad couldn't help but lean in and kiss her himself. Ingrid knew which was which, and he wondered if it were clear in the way they kissed as her tongue teased his lips. "Now we go." Grabbing hold of Ingrid and Adam, Vlad dashed out of there and they landed outside laughing. "Oh man, that was uncomfortable but their faces were a picture! Lets not tell my mum about this though, yeah?" "Vampires honour. Lets go before they recover from the shock. Its fun to leave them hanging!" Adam nodded, no longer surprised when Vlad grabbed his waist and pulled him into the air.

Their castle was a welcome sight as they landed, still laughing. "What was that about?" "You and that other vamp, Vlad said he couldn't prove a point because it would give away who was who. So I ignored that that was the weirdest thing I've ever done - including moving to Transylvania on the word of two near strangers - for the fun of their reactions. Sorry for the surprise." Ingrid shook her head dismissively, but she was amused - he could tell. "I'm going to go wash my mouth out with bleach, lets never do that again." Ingrid left the two of them still chuckling, and after they went to change out of the formal attire (and he heard Adam brushing his teeth), the brothers relaxed in front of the fire with mugs of tea and shared the reactions they had seen. "Most of them just assumed that was us admitting who was who, what happened when I cut in?" "A few looked like you had hit them with a frying pan in a cartoon, and there was one looking at Ingrid like she was mad."

"Well anyone who thinks I didn't trick Ingrid into this will assume she's with me for the power of the chosen one behind her, regardless of us being siblings. Both of us would bring that into question." "Yeah, they'll all be thinking I have a thing for breather loving idiots with vacant expressions." The scent of fangpaste filled the room as Ingrid landed on the other sofa, hand elegantly wrapped around a goblet of blood and her outfit the same as before except she wasn't wearing her cape. "I think they would be more perturbed you had a thing for brothers." "After they've had the last couple of months to get used to me and Vlad, and especially after tonight, that's probably the consensus." The elephant in the room was clear, it was more a case of who brought it up first. As it turned out, it was Adam.

"So, who was the pretty boy in leather you were dancing with?" Vlad turned a raised eyebrow to his brother then. "Pretty boy?" "What? Don't you get gay vampires?" Both Vlad and Ingrid probably word twin expressions of surprise then. "No, we do. Not all that often, but then that could just mean nobody is public about it. So you're... Gay?" "I would say I'm bi, but I'm young enough that I can explore my options. Anyway, the cute guy?" Adam sipped at his tea, not shaken by his revelation. Though Vlad supposed it didn't really matter. "Varso? I suppose he was attractive enough, I spent half the time tuning out his nonsense ramblings about how much he looks up to Count Dracula. Garlic, he was boring." Vlad hated himself for being happy to hear that, the jealousy he couldn't be feeling soothed. "You carried on talking with him for ages though, it looked like Vlad had left you for himself." "Morgan was loitering and you were teaching the half breed, I chose the lesser of two evils."

"I didn't even know he was there. You should have said, I would have loved the chance to scare him bloodless with Adam here." "I'll keep that in mind. You do know we will be expected to explain ourselves at the next Council. They are going to think you changed the laws to protect him, and dad." "I'll get a report from the slayers guild, stating when they found him. But you're right, they will want an explanation." Downing the last of his cold tea with a grimace, Vlad tried to stop his eyes wandering the length of Ingrid stretched out on the other sofa. Adam's challenge to a game of chess was a welcome distraction, and Zoltan even joined in the laughter with Ingrid when he lost horrendously again. "Most powerful vampire in existence, can't beat a half-ling at chess. Pathetic." Tossing a fireball at Ingrid absent mindedly, Vlad reset the board. "Lets see you do better."

Vlad thought better of the challenge a minute later - their dad had never taught Ingrid chess. Ingrid took the seat, and he watched in amazement as she flattened Adam across the board. "Whoa. Where did you learn to play? Because it was clearly a better place than Vlad did." Scowling at his vrother, Vlad was curious as to the answer nonetheless. "A three hundred year old zombie was better company, and a better teacher, than dad." "Chandu taught you chess?" "He couldn't speak, it was an ideal arrangement." "And who is Chandu?" Vlad hadn't got that far into story telling yet, still emotional when he talked about Robin and Stokely at times. "An incident involving dad at parents evening, chess, a zombie and Jonno and his dad." Telling the story of Chandu wasn't as painful as he expected, and Adam seemed to enjoy learning more about their lives.

"Ok, its gone sunrise and I am exhausted. This has been one of the best nights ever, thank you both." Adam waved himself off to his coffin, and Vlad heard him hit the bottom of his sleep box heavily. "He really was ready to hit the hay." Ingrid was stood behind him as he checked Adam's door was closed, ensuring nothing would be overheard. "Yeah, but he had a good time and I'm glad we can give him good memories, that being our brother wasn't the worst thing to happen to him." She followed him into his room, watching him undress for sleep like she had every right to loiter. "Were you jealous?" Vlad turned round in surprise, he hadn't expected her to actually speak. "What? Watching you kiss Adam? Even I'm not that wrong in the head." "Disturbing mental image. No. Varso?" Dumping his shirt and trousers in the laundry and pulling on his sleep shorts, Vlad weighed up honesty or lies.

"Does it matter? This is what we got engaged for. So you could meet someone you wanted. Since when did my feelings count?" No longer looking at her, Vlad turned when the silence began to weigh on him. Ingrid was gone, and Vlad knew it would be suicide to follow her. Ignoring the tears threatening to slide down his cheeks, Vlad curled up in his coffin and stared at the lid. He didn't even realise he never fell asleep until there was a tentative knock at his door. "Vlad?" Staggering upright and scrubbing a hand over his face, Vlad snapped his fingers and the door opened. "Hey Adam, sorry I overslept. I'm just gonna hit the shower and I'll come find you?" His brother smiled and nodded, but then he seemed to take a closer look at him. "Vlad, have you been crying?" "Bad dreams sometimes, I'm fine now I'm awake. Go on, I'll be down soon."

He flitted into his bathroom without further conversation, and heard his bedroom door close again before he relaxed under the water. Rinsing away evidence of tears and exhaustion from his face, he dried and dressed and plastered a smile on his face for the sake of Adam. "Did talking about stuff yesterday make you have bad dreams? I'm sorry." Adam was picking up Ingrid's habit of starting conversations without preamble now, which was strange. "No no, I just get them sometimes. Yesterday was pretty great overall, you did an awesome impersonation of me." "It helps we look alike though." Tiredly downing soya blood like it was going out of style, Vlad felt somewhat more awake after the third glass. "What's the plan for today then?" "I have some work to do, the guild will want to hear you weren't savagely murdered last night and you have some reading to finish." Adam pouted but dutifully followed Vlad to the library after breakfast.

Sure enough, his phone rang about twenty minutes in and they convinced the guild Adam had survived his first proper vampire event. "Can you put together a report about when you found Adam? I need to show the council I didn't have solo motive for changing the laws." "Yeah, I can have it ready for next week? Shall I invite the humans over to see Adam again?" Adam vigorously agreed, so Vlad passed that along and Jonno said he would message Vlad with a date. "I'm glad we finally got a week off from Council, there's nothing new to work with so no point going." "Must be nice to be the boss." Rolling his eyes at Adam, Vlad scrawled a signature at the bottom of his work. "Yeah minus half my colleagues wanting my dust, a hundred vampiresses who want to get pregnant by me so they can say they have the heir of the chosen one, and having an eternal boring job." "Probably beats these books, how old are they?" Eyeing the book Adam had open, Vlad knew it was a fairly new edition. "That one is about two centuries, so pretty recent actually. Dad had a book of baby names for the 'modern vampire' - published 1254 AD." "Ok that is old."

Adam was thrilled to hear they could stop working after lunch, and took the beating at Sluedo in stride. "Is it always the slayer in the kitchen with a stake?" "There are other options, that just comes up the most." Lethargy began to creep in later in the night, and Vlad found himself dozing off somewhat during a lull in conversation, the heat of the fire making him feel even sleepier. He bolted awake when Ingrid dumped cold water on his face - much to Adam and Zoltans amusement. "Oh yes, hilarious. Don't start a war you can't win Ingrid." The challenge was there in her eyes, and Adam was in for more laughs if this prank war began. "Excuse me. I need to put on a dry top." He flitted off, changing quickly and ducking in to Ingrid's crypt. Technically he wasn't supposed to be in here, but as he traded the expensive vintage bottles she stored in here for tomato juice, it was too fun to care. Dusting her coffin interior with glitter as a finishing touch (Ingrid abhored Twilight), he wiped his hands off and returned to the living room.

"That took a while." Ingrid eyed him suspiciously. "I had to dry my hair off?" She hummed noncommittally and left again, leaving him confused as to why she had come in the first place. "So what were you really doing?" Pressing a finger to his lips, Vlad winked and indicated to his brother to listen out. Shaking with suppressed laughter, Ingrid's sound of displeasure was loud enough to wake the dead. "That's one." If he knew her as well as he did, the next thing Ingrid would do was angrily open her coffin - knocking glitter everywhere. As predicted, the next sound he heard was "VLAD!" and he lost the fight against his laughter. "I changed her blood for tomato juice, then threw glitter in her coffin. You have no idea how much that girl hates Twilight!" "Should we be running?" "You're fine. I should leave the country." Vlad didn't move however, waiting for the fallout in relative comfort.

They both burst out laughing when Ingrid appeared, spitting angry and sparkling. "Ingrid, you have a little something there..." Vlad managed to choke out through his hysterics, clutching his chest as his dead lungs racked with laughter. "I am going to kill you, then use your dust for decoration." "I warned you not to start a war you couldn't win." Vlad tried to keep a straight face, but then the fire would glint off more glitter in Ingrid's hair, or on her dress and he was off again. Adam was no better, chuckling himself silly at the murderous look on Ingrid's glittering face. "You're next half breed." "I didn't do anything!" "You laughed at her, that's basically a deathwish. Bet you didn't expect death by Twilight when you agreed to come here." Adam fell back into laughing, and Vlad ran for it before Ingrid actually staked him then and there. She wasn't far behind him, he could practically feel the murderous rage as Ingrid chased him. Vlad kicked himself a minute later for thinking closing his door behind him would stop her - vampires could walk through walls.

The attack wasn't what he expected, as she pinned him to the wall and kissed him hard. Her cool breath tingled across his neck as she whispered "were you jealous?" against his ear, and the feel of her lips on his skin stopped him even thinking of a lie as he breathed out "yes". Ingrid kissed him again, nails digging into his hips and if they hadn't heard footsteps outside the door, Vlad knew what would have followed. "Vlad? Did she kill you?" Swiping glitter off his mouth, Vlad couldn't help smirking at the transfer all over his clothes. "No! She gave it a good try though." The two separated, and when Vlad opened his door he hoped the glitter on his clothes distracted from anything else. "Oh, very fetching." "I could pull a million teenage girls any minute now."

Adam looked at Ingrid, still scowling at them both and poorly concealed a snort of laughter. "Right. Dinner?" Vlad nodded, and breathed a sigh of relief when Adam turned away and walked ahead. Swallowing thickly under Ingrid's dark gaze, he forced himself to follow his brother before he could fall into the coffin between him and his sister. By the time they were done with dinner, he felt back in control of himself enough to meditate and focus on keeping his powers in check. Making a mental note to try communicating with his father via telepathy to call him to Transylvania, he and Adam parted ways for the day on a light note as Vlad went to shower the glitter off himself. Shivering with the memory of earlier as he noted the crescent moon indents in his hips, Vlad wrapped a towel around his waist and went back through to his room.

Ingrid was there, no longer covered in glitter but still able to make desire spark through him. "I'm going to try and invite dad over tonight, I don't know if he will come immediately or at all, but I thought you should know." He actually meant to tell her closer to the time, but he thought it best to say while he could think straight - a rarity when Ingrid was this close to him. "Joy. Why?" "Because Adam deserves a chance to meet him, and I would rather it be on our territory?" Ingrid didn't answer, which he took as a sort of assent. Her hands pulled the towel from his body, smirking as he responded to her proximity and pushing him backwards until he lay in their coffin. They both wrestled her clothes away, rougher and harder with each other than usual tonight and Vlad still reveled in every touch, nip and scratch.

"Better have the discussion with Adam about how we have to act when dad is here." Ingrid mumbled as she traced over his sweat-slick chest, as naked and breathless as he was when she lay next to him. "Is it still an act?" She didn't answer until after they were done trading healing kisses over each others skin, and Vlad was shivering with want all over again by the time the evidence was faded. "Don't ask me that." Vlad wanted to ask, wanted to push but he wanted Ingrid not to leave more right now, pulling her close again and kissing her. Ingrid melted against his body and it made Vlad ache, wishing he could understand her thoughts for one minute so he knew what this was, where he stood and why she had to torment him this way.

-YD-

 **Daddy Dracula is coming back to the story!**


	17. Want

**A chapter a day keeps the boredom away!**

-YD-

Ingrid curled up against his chest, silent but unresisting as he tightened his arm around her. She was gone when he woke, but Vlad expected that much as he went to shower. Adam was already in the kitchen, their breakfast talks a standard part of their nights now. "You have to remember, if dad is here he thinks me and Ingrid are actually together, we can't let him think otherwise or it was all for nothing." His brother nodded seriously, then smiled into his mug of tea. "The other thing is, don't expect too much from him. He's not the worst father out there, but he's got his flaws. He may deny you, reject you. But whatever happens, you're family."

He left Adam with Zoltan - the stuffed hound was a surprisingly good confidant - and went to focus his telepathy. It had never been his strong suit, but a lot of hard work had paid off. His father didn't respond, but Vlad was certain "important event requires you in Transylvania, come to my castle" got through fine. Quickly warning Adam not to mention the knowledge about Malik either, Vlad joined his brother in the main room and let him best him at chess repeatedly - anxiety was clear in his brother now. "Relax Adam, you'll be fine." He shakily bobbed his head in assent, even distracted he was a formidable chess player.

The knock at the door was unexpected - their father had access from the ball - so Vlad gestured for Adam to stay put and found Ingrid stood by the door. "Well I'm not answering it." Shaking his head at her, Vlad grasped the handle and pulled the heavy wood open. The reason for the Count not just letting himself in was clear - he wasn't alone. "Dad. Mum. Wolfie! Suppose you better come in." Vlad stepped back to let them in, and Wolfie gifted both he and Ingrid with a bright smile. "So, it's true then?" Magda was looking at Ingrid, so Vlad had a pretty good idea what she was referring to. Ingrid nodded infinitesimally, so Vlad stepped over to her and kissed her openly. "Completely. That's old news though, not what I called dad over for." Wolfie was hovering, and sniffing the air. "Who else is here? They smell funny." Chuckling at his other half-ling brother, Vlad indicated the staircase.

"Come see." The trio of visitors walked hesitantly in front, and Ingrid breathed words against his neck, making him shiver. "Wasn't counting on mum finding out dad had an illegitimate son, this should be fun." Vlad hummed in agreement, words failing him when Ingrid kissed him again. Lacing their fingers together, they sped up to walk ahead of the others, leading them to the living room. "Wolfie, mum, dad. Meet Adam Giles. Adam, this Wolfie, Magda and of course, Count Dracula." The shock on their faces was a picture, one Vlad couldn't resist lifting Adam's camera to immortalise. Wolfie recovered first, walking over to Adam and sniffing him, then yipping - which made their sibling jump a little. "You look like Vlad but you smell funny. What is he?" "Charming Wolfie. Like you, he's half vampire. Unlike you, he's half human." The younger half-ling didn't seem to even notice Vlad and Ingrid reclining on the sofa together, waiting for the explosion.

"How old is he?" "Hello, he can hear you. I turn sixteen in about six weeks." There it was, the angry flash in their mothers eyes, the "oops I've been caught" expression on their fathers. "Who is his mother?" "Well when you get around as much as I do..." "Who is she? You and your thing for breathers! Ugh." "Mum, you're dating a werewolf, lets not go there." "And you're engaged to your sister... What have I been born into?" Adam was a fairly convincing actor it seemed. "His mother is Sally Giles, she was confused when we had no idea who Salem Smith was. Whitby Goth Festival ring any bells dad?" "Salem Smith? Who's that?" Wolfie was gnawing on the corner of his coat, watching the proceedings with curious eyes. "Every one lies a bit on a first date!" "That's not all you did." Adam and the Count cringed in sync then, and Ingrid shook with suppressed laughter against him.

"Are you two just going to stand there? Take a seat or fight to the dust, you're making the place look untidy." Both parents hissed at Vlad, then gave each other sideways looks. "I'm famished, point me to the blood cellar." "Use the kitchen!" Ingrid was rather protective of the blood cellar... Or perhaps possessive was the word. He could see their father about to snap back at Ingrid, but then he realised Vlad had an arm around her, and he wasn't that stupid. Usually. The two adults vanished, and the four youths relaxed. "So, are we brothers too?" Wolfie sat next to Adam, looking at him closely. "I don't think so, technically, though at this point I'm lost. We can be friends though, and that's just as good?" Wolfie pondered that for a moment, then nodded and smiled. "Ok." Adam's eyes widened as Wolfie hugged him, but he returned it quickly.

The half wolf pottered over to the sofa containing Vlad and Ingrid next, clambering up to hug Ingrid with a happy sound. "I missed you Ingrid!" When Ingrid escaped, Wolfie looked at the way they were sitting at last. "So can I hug you Vlad or is that Ingrid's job now?" The boys face was so innocent it hurt, and Ingrid sighed before moving so Wolfie could hug his brother. "How come I haven't seen you guys in so long?" The youngest went back to sitting by Adam, and Ingrid resumed lying against him in spite of them having nobody to perform to now. "Mum took you away, and taking over as Grand High Vampire has been pretty hectic, not to mention finding Adam and everything. You're always welcome here Wolfie. I promise."

Wolfie whimpered, kicking the sofa. "I don't like living with mum and dad, they hardly notice I'm there and mum told me you guys sent me away because you didn't like me." "Wolfie, that is absolutely not true. Ingrid was the one who fought to keep you when mum left you the first time, and I told her she didn't have to take you last time. Even dad likes you, he protected you from Ramanga remember?" The pure joy on Wolfies face was unbelievable, like all his Christmasses had come at once in the form of a lifetime supply of chew toys. "Really?" "Really. If you want to stay, just say so and I won't let you leave. You gotta be a good one though, and be nice to Adam." "I can do that!" Ingrid hadn't spoken yet, but she gifted Wolfie with a smile that made Vlad's heart hurt. "No chewing, scratching or in any other way damaging the furniture."

The castle rattled then, and Adam and Wolfie looked mildly concerned. "Well, they are either fighting, making up or fighting about making up. I'm not sure which is worse." "I thought they were split up?" "Yeah, they can only stand each other for a few days at a time. And most of that isn't talking." "Nice Ingrid." She smirked up at him, and Vlad had to clamp down on desire inappropriate for the two others in the room with them. The way Ingrid shifted in his lap, she noticed. "Just speaking the truth, there is no soft and gentle way to learn about the Dracula clan." "True." The castle rattled again, less severely. "Hmm. That'll be mum throwing something at dad." There was the sound of glass smashing. "That's dad breaking something." Thunder rolled outside the castle. "That could be either of them." There was no more rattling, and Vlad cringed. "Well, I'm not checking they haven't staked each other any time soon." "I'll stake them both myself if they touched my crypt room." "If your coffin is still covered in glitter, it'll be obvious."

Ingrid elbowed him in the stomach for the reminder, then gagged at the implication. "Why does Ingrid have her own room?" As long as the Count and Magda were in the castle, they had to be careful about what they said - they could be overheard. "So she has somewhere to go when I bore her with council work so much she wants to stake me in the eyeballs?" Wolfie grimaced, but took Vlad at face value and didn't question further. It was only a few minutes more before the parents returned, and Vlad felt mildly ill. "You could have showered, there's enough bathrooms in this place." Ingrid growled angrily when it became obvious there was particles of shimmer dust on their clothes, and Adam and Wolfie burst out laughing as one. "Should I tell dad or will you mum?" Wolfie was smiling innocently, but Vlad knew that look - Ingrid had perfected it as a child.

"Excuse me? Tell him what?" "You have glitter on your clothes, both of you. The only place you could have picked that up was Ingrid's spare coffin. And even Wolfie knows the only reason you two would be in the same coffin." Magda glared at each of them in turn, then looked at her wrist. "Oh my, is that the time? I should be off!" They barely had a second to blink before Magda vanished, and the front door slammed closed a few seconds later. "Well I guess you're staying Wolfie?" The little half-ling blinked, then cheered. "You're the grand high vampire! You can't just harbour a half breed." "Adam has been here a little over a month, right after I rewrote the dimidius laws. Which by the way, only protect you once. If we find another half human Dracula from you, you get six months in a UV cage. Wolfie is my next project. Mind being a study buddy Wolfie?" "Do I get a lab coat?" Chuckling, Vlad smiled at him. "Sure. Just don't eat it."

Wolfie sat humming happily to himself, brushing Zoltans fur intermittently and otherwise paying very little attention to the older ones now he knew he was allowed to stay. "So... You're my father? We didn't really get past introductions. I'm Adam." "Count Dracula. Charmed, I'm sure. You know, you look startlingly like Vladimir." "Yeah, we have established that. We took him to a party, even Roque couldn't tell us apart and he's supposed to be my security guard." The Count still didn't like to even look at Vlad and Ingrid sat together, and Vlad wanted to give Adam a chance to talk. Dashing to and from his weapons stash, he handed Adam a garlic gas cannister. "Won't kill him, but it'll knock him out cold. We're going to go set up somewhere for Wolfie to sleep, you two can talk. No dad, I'm not saying you'll attack him, but the guild said we can't leave him alone with any other vampire unless he's armed." That quieted the Count, and Vlad looked to Adam to check he was ok. "Zoltan, why not give Wolfie a tour?" "Yes Master Vlad." The wolf wheeled himself out, Wolfie trotting obediently behind him.

"Go ahead guys, I'm set." Ingrid grabbed his hand and pulled him away, whilst complaining he was too overprotective. "I don't want the guild or the VHC to have cause to end the cease-fire. That's not overprotective, that's common sense. And he's our brother, just like Wolfie." Vlad lost count of where they were, in conversation and the castle, when Ingrid pressed him into a wall and pinned him in place with her body, her mouth on his in seconds. "Its not even lunch, this isn't fair." he managed to speak, breath ragged and heavy with desire he wasn't sure he could ever temper. "Since when have I played fair?" Ingrid backed off him, leaving him bereft but able to master himself somewhat. "Where are we putting Wolfie?" "Not the one next to ours, that has a bath. Wolfie hates baths." Ingrid seemed to realise she knew that and glared at him, the message clearly "if you ever tell anyone you're dust". He didn't bring up that she called it "our" room, not his. "Ok then... Round the corner from Adam's room? Close enough to be safe, far enough to be... Safe. Does he sleep in a coffin? Because otherwise he will have a pile of spare blankets and cushions."

"He would probably prefer it. Both? He might be more vampiric as he gets older." Looking down at Ingrid, who was still close enough for her perfume to tease his senses, Vlad raised an eyebrow. "You're talking like he's going to be here in the more-distant future." And that she would be too, but he wasn't about to bring that up. "I don't see mum challenging His Grandness for the illegal child she doesn't much care for. And I definitely don't see the sentimental wimpire you are giving him up easy. So yes, I expect him to be here in the future. I... I might even visit." He wanted to challenge that, but now was not the time. "You can find the linen cupboard, its around here somewhere. I'll go get one of the guest coffins, you'll want a new one anyway so I can order two in one." Ingrid looked like she was about to say something, but then she turned and went in search of the cupboard. Sighing, Vlad took himself down to the guest crypts. Trading the one his father had... been in recently for a guest one, leaving Ingrid's crypt room almost empty, he lifted the unused one up to the newly assigned Wolfie room.

"Now he's got the choice. Just like you." Vlad dropped the coffin down, then turned and left Ingrid there. He needed to put his head straight before he returned to Adam and their father, so he sat on top of his - their - coffin, trying to focus himself calmer. Too used to regular mealtimes since Adam's appetite started kicking in, Vlad felt his stomach complain and figured lunch would be a good idea. Dashing down to the living room, there was no dead or unconscious, and Adam didn't seem particularly upset. "Dad, you staying for lunch?" The Count sat thinking for a moment before deciding he wanted blood. Adam seemed cheery enough over lunch, though he kept rubbing his jaw and Vlad wasn't sure if that was another Ingrid-ism or his dental pain was back. Wolfie sat on the floor, sharing his food with Zoltan and chuckling to himself. At least someone was happy and unweighed.

Ingrid was nowhere to be seen, but Vlad was not sure that was about him, and not their father. Not that the Count would admit he noticed that, since he recovered from the poison and tried to marry Ingrid off again the vampire had refused to admit he loved both his children. As he was male, Vlad hoped for Adam's sake the Count would accept him in time. Their father declined staying any longer, and left fairly quickly after he finished his drink. Vlad didn't push Adam to talk about how it went, leaving him to process while he took Wolfie to see his new room. "Can I put my name on the door? That would be cool." Handing the boy a pen won Vlad a huge smile, and lifting him so Wolfie could write it high enough for everyone to see in his wobbly childlike script. Truth be told, Vlad was amazed the boy could read and write, especially when he was only five.

"You have a coffin, and a pile of stuff to curl up in depending on whether you go to sleep on two legs or four. Is that ok?" "Its awesome! Thanks Vlad. I love it." His little brother hugged him tight around the waist, then dashed off happily to tell Zoltan and Adam all about his room. "Dad's gone, if that's why you're hiding you can come out." "Why else would I be?" Turning to lean against the wall facing Ingrid, he shrugged. "I don't know. Sometimes I feel like I know you better than anyone. Other times I don't think I know you at all." Ingrid looked past him, to the door Wolfie had scribbled on. "Nice touch." "I'm all about accommodating everyone as best as I can. I let you set the pace, the tone, I don't make you explain yourself. I started this for you, and I drove myself crazy dealing with wanting you, because I knew you wouldn't feel the same. And you make me feel tiny and insignificant in return. At least Wolfie is thankful and Adam can admit he's happy enough here." Pushing himself upright, Vlad turned to head back down to his brothers.

Her hand on his shoulder stopped him, turning him back to face her. "You're not insignificant. And I know you didn't start this to get that kind of close to me. But you are never going to get what you really want from me. And I think it's time you accept that." Holding her gaze, Vlad kept his answer simple. "You don't know what I want." before he actually turned and left. Ingrid couldn't know what he wanted - Vlad wasn't even sure anymore. He felt a little safer back with his brothers in the living room, and Ingrid didn't come back down near them. Wolfie slotted into dinner time just as easily, and he watched with wide, curious eyes as they played chess before bed. "I'll measure you up for some clothes tomorrow Wolfie, you'll have to wear my old stuff until then." "I don't mind!" Wolfie was exuberant, joyous in this situation already and Vlad envied both Adam and his ease of adjustment - he felt like he was losing his mind.

-YD-

 **Ah writers block, this took hours more than it should have!**


	18. Broken

**Ok, so here we are again! There will be some kind of event and I guess a trigger for mentions of sexual assault - nothing explicit or anything like that - in this chapter.**

-YD-

"Ok, so you are going to be good and not drive Ingrid crazy right?" "Yep!" Vlad and Adam were off to England again - Vlad had a report to pick up and Adam was seeing his family, which meant Ingrid was alone with Wolfie for the night. It had been a week since Wolfie 'moved in', and Vlad had done basic tests on him, which Wolfie allowed as long as he got to wear his lab coat over his new clothes. Which made him look like Ingrid's personal groupie, he had chosen a whole lot of things that a young boy Ingrid would have picked. "We'll be back before daybreak. Don't burn the place down Wolfie!" Adam stood for Vlad to grab hold of him, used to the shift of gravity now as they headed back to the Guild.

Jonno greeted him at the door, inviting him in quickly and showing them to the rooms they usually used now. "Any negative stuff happening with him?" "He set fire to a chair when he tripped over it, but he's actually pretty calm all things considered." Jonno chuckled, handing Vlad a copy of the report for finding Adam. "Thanks, Council this week should be fun. He met dad last week, still won't talk about it but he didn't seem too upset." "And how did the Count take it?" "No idea. He left the same night, and there were no thunderstorms, but thats all I know. I turned this kids life upside down, I'm not going to invade his privacy too." His friend nodded understandingly, then held out another sheaf of paper. "What's this?" "Another one. Tricky though." Scanning the report, Vlad felt his eyes widen. "Convicted murderer. Great. And he's seventeen." "Is it too late to help him? He killed someone with fire, is that because of him being... I don't know how this untransformed thing works." Vlad kept reading, and it started making sense. "My guess is he was unbelievably angry, that usually precedes flaming stuff and according to this police statement I won't ask how you got, he said he didn't know where the fire came from during the fight."

"So what do we do?" "Can you get him out? If he's locked up he won't get a chance to make his choice, he won't be able to step into the sunrise. If that's what he wants, but he deserves the choice." Watching his friend think, indecision clear, Vlad waited. "We can try. But he could be dangerous." "You guys have argentalium shackles, garlic gas will still slow him down if it doesn't knock him out. I just need to get him to the blood mirror. He's a Lecushka right?" "DNAs a match. I'm glad we found Adam in time. How do we get him out?" "They think he's got porphyria right? So use that, find a way to get him transferred to a special place. If you need me, I can always hypnotize them but I would rather not if it's an option." Jonno scribbled something down on a sheet of paper, then sighed. "The guild won't like this." "He's a human right now. If he transforms and still puts something wrong, then he is all yours. But he didn't ask for those brothers to do this, the kid deserves a shot at getting it right." This was all he needed, possible proof dimidius were dangerous. But looking at Adam, Vlad couldn't agree with that, the incarcerated teen must be so lost and confused to lash out like this.

"Ok. I'll find some of the more supportive guild members, we'll work it out. I presume I get him here and call you to get him?" "Best plan we've got. I'm glad we've found so many of the younger ones, I just hope we can save them from this, I never wanted to be a vampire but I can't imagine not knowing why all those things happened to me growing up." As much as he hated to think it, this was a welcome distraction from the heavy silence between he and Ingrid this last week. She had taken the last guest coffin while they waited for the new order, and most of the time he had no idea if she was even home. The networking weekend was next week, and he was dreading it ten times more than usual. "You ok Vlad?" Realising he had been ignoring Jonno while lost in thought, Vlad apologised. "Just dreading the council networking weekend, where some thousand year old weirdo is going to offer me the blood of a virgin to put a law through and another will offer me their daughter in hopes of a place on the council." "Nice."

Humming unhappily, Vlad chugged from his soya bottle. "At least it only happens every five years. Though as this is my job for all eternity, I'm not sure how much of a comfort that is." "Well if you ever want to quit I'm sure my mum would love the chance to jam a stake through you." "Cheers Jonno. I'm so glad we are friends." The sarcasm didn't need clarifying for that statement. "Jonno. Was your dad buried or cremated?" "Do I want to know why you're asking that?" "Just answer me? Its important." "Buried. Not standard protocol but mum wanted a grave to visit. Now why are you asking me that?" Vlad wasn't sure this was his brightest idea, but he was almost there, may as well finish the conversation. "Do you want him back?" "You can't turn a corpse Vlad." "Not as a vampire. As a human?" "Are you serious?" Twisting the pen in his hands, it splintered in his grip. "Deadly. I would have to find the equipment, and I need your blood. But vampire alchemy is an interesting thing." "I donate a pint every five days, my blood isn't in short supply. What else do you need?"

Staring at the wall, Vlad chuckled. "It would help enormously if the Guild hadn't burned down Stokely Castle." "We kept a lot of the weird stuff we found there. What do you need?" "It was like a table, had wires and would have been surrounded by jars. And two big conductors at the end?" Jonno's eyes widened, and he shouted at a guard to watch Adam and the Giles before leading Vlad down through the building. Keying a code into a pad disabled a security thing designed to kill Vlad where he stood, and Jonno pressed his hand to a scanner that opened a door. "Is this it?" "That's the one. I can't do it tonight, Ingrid would have my dust and you need to convince your mum not to stake me for needing to dig up your dad." "I get it. But this is for real? You can bring him back?" "Completely. I'll give you a list of what I need, and you can talk to your mother?" "Lets do that now. May as well kill time until you leave in two hours." Vlad nodded, going back to the room they were in and starting on the list while Jonno fetched Mina.

"My son says you need me? Unless you want dusting, I'm not sure what for." Mina still didn't like him then. "You tell her, she won't trust my word." Jonno explained to his mum, and the disbelief on her face was clear. "What kind of sick joke is this?" "It isn't! I want to put this right, I know my mindwipe was directly responsible for his death. Give me the chance to fix it. Please?" "Why did you never offer this before?" Vlad didn't want to sound like he was blaming the Guild, but it still sounded accusatory when he answered with "you torched Stokely Castle. As far as I knew, the table was lost and I've been a little busy trying to stop humans and vampires annihilating each other to look for a new one." Mina looked at him searchingly, then nodded very slowly. "What do you need?" Vlad handed her the list, and wasn't surprised she looked a little ill. "Thats disgusting." "I know, but it works. I did it before, Renfields father. He tried to kill dad and Renfield knew the antidote to regeneration. But it's possible, and I want to do this for you."

"I need to think about this. It goes against my instincts as a slayer to trust this." Vlad nodded and stood up. "I understand. Just call me when you've made up your mind. Not like I'm gonna die of old age." Jonno chuckled, dark eyes unusually bright with emotion. They didn't talk for a while, and then Vlad's watch was beeping. "We need to go. Thanks for this report Jonno. I expect I'll see you soon." Adam said a sad goodbye to his mum and sister, and Georgina even gave Vlad a hug. Patting her on the shoulder awkwardly, he pointed out they needed to get going. "Not long to go now, little over a month and he'll be all vamped up!" They left for Transylvania quickly after, and Wolfie greeted them joyfully and asked about their adventures. "We'll tell you tonight, bed Wolfie!" Wolfie yowled in response but headed off to bed anyway, and Adam gave Vlad a short hug before taking himself off to bed. Showering the residual garlic smell from his skin, Vlad felt the issues with Ingrid close around him as he lay in the coffin alone again. Still, at least he could make another family better, since he couldn't do it with his own. Though Wolfie seemed happier here he supposed.

Waking alone still twisted in his stomach, and Vlad ended up cancelling the VHC meeting due to 'family emergency' and spent the night doing jigsaw puzzles with Adam and Wolfie, just to put off explaining Adam and trying to act like a strong leader when he felt lost inside. There was no getting out of the upcoming networking weekend though, and he regrettably pulled on his robes and crown, leaning against the front door waiting for Ingrid. "Ready?" "Lets go." Ingrid let him hold her arm as they walked in, and he caught the ghost of a smirk when she saw Morgan working as the reception desk attendee. Vlad only asked her to stay where he could see her, and otherwise she was free to do as she liked as he sat in his throne and proceeded to look exceptionally bored with the whole affair. The only female there, Ingrid was easily the most popular there and Vlad tried to ignore the jealousy bubbling in his gut, waving a waiter over to pour him a drink. He wasn't absent enough to not tell the vampire to drink it first, and when the vampire didn't crumble to pieces he was satisfied he could drink safely.

The human blood spread over his tongue, not settling in his twisting stomach easily as he pretended to listen to various vampires attempting to appeal to him. Roque was stifling an amused grin by halfway through, already aware Vlad hated every minute of this sort of thing. About four hours in to this eternal torture, Vlad realised he couldn't see Ingrid anymore. "Roque, did you see where Ingrid went?" "No your Grandness, I apologise." Looking around, he couldn't see Morgan anymore either and he was instantly panicky, anxious. "Watch my back Roque." "Always sir." Stepping down from his throne, Vlad scanned for room exits. There were only two, and one led to the reception area so he went for the other one, sidestepping any vampire who tried to catch his attention. Ingrid's perfume was tangible in the air, he spent hours every night haunted by it to know.

"What exactly are we looking for sir?" Vlad held up a hand and shhed him, straining his hearing and certain he could hear a pained whimper. Hissing back quickly "I'm looking for Ingrid, you're checking nobody stakes me and you may be a witness" Vlad followed the sound before Roque could question him further. Another whimper, this time closer, called Vlad to a side door that he barely restrained himself from smashing down - Ingrid might be too close to it and get hurt. Yanking it angrily out of the frame, Vlad almost threw up. They may both be clothed now, but Ingrid's face, the cuffs on her wrists and the scent in the air made it clear what happened. Roque didn't have chance to get past him before Vlad dusted Morgan where he stood, hurrying over to Ingrid. "Hold still, one second." Ingrid was still whimpering, making the nausea flare in his stomach as he tugged the cuffs until they broke open. Her lip was bleeding and her body was shaking, and once her arms were free Ingrid clung to him. "Take me home, please?" Peering over her shoulder, Roque nodded. "I'll clear the room sir." "Thank you Roque."

"Its ok Ingrid, he's dust, I got him." Vlad hadn't seen pain on her face like it before, not when Will was dusted in front of her, not when Vlad's reflection dumped her in the sun. This was Ingrid feeling she wasn't invincible, her feeling broken. "Clear sir. I told them you would rearrange at your convenience." "Thank you again Roque, I need to get my fiance home. Excuse us." Roque stepped aside, and Ingrid didn't let go of him when they got out of the building, leaving him no option but to tandem transform her with him. When they got back to the castle, he landed them upstairs away from the younger two, so Ingrid wouldn't have to see them if she didn't want to. It took her a moment to realise they were back, that she was safe again. "I need to shower." "Do you want me to stay with you? Or should I go tell the others something happened and to keep their distance?" Ingrid just stared blankly, and he wasn't sure she even heard him. "Just tell them... Just tell them not to touch me. Not what happened." Knowing Ingrid would probably bolt if he tried to kiss the bleeding lip, he slowly licked the pad of his thumb and brushed it over the cut.

"Your lip was bleeding." "Bastard bit me." Vlad walked her to the bathroom door, making sure she could see it was empty. "Borrow my clothes if you need to, I'll post Zoltan at the door. Just find me when you're ready." Ingrid nodded slowly, then closed the bathroom door behind her. Zoltan yelped when Vlad grabbed him and dropped him outside the bedroom door, but dutifully agreed when he asked him to keep watch for Ingrid. Swallowing thickly, he ventured down to the living room. "Vlad? I thought you were gone for the weekend? Why is there blood on your hand? What happened? Wheres Ingrid?" Shushing Wolfie a little, Vlad sat down. "Someone hurt Ingrid, and she's probably going to be jumpy and not want you to touch her. Don't ask her about it, ok?" Wolfies big eyes were shining with concern, chewing on his bottom lip anxiously. "Is she ok?" "She will be, but you need to remember she might not be for a while. Can you do that Wolfie?" "Did you get the bad guy?" "Yes, he's dust." "Good!"

Vlad watched in confusion as Wolfie clambered off the sofa and walked to the window shutter, but understood when he looked over at Vlad to explain. "I'm a dog!" He opened the shutter, and suddenly there was a dog where his little brother had stood. Adam's face was serious, a short severe nod his only sign of acceptance. "Just try to act normally with her, I have no idea how she's going to be but treating her like she's fragile will only piss her off and make her feel worse." "I know. It... It happened to a girl at my school. She cried all the time, and got angry when people used to ask her what was wrong. She ended up leaving." Giving Adam a tight squeeze on the shoulder, Vlad paced anxiously, worrying about Ingrid upstairs. He heard slow, tentative footsteps nearby and mouthed to Adam "she's here", to which Adam vacated his sofa and moved to the games table to continue his latest jigsaw puzzle. Ingrid rounded the door slowly, wearing jeans and a hooded jumper he recognised as his, a little big on her but he hoped she felt safer in them.

Trying not to stare, Vlad waited to see what she would do. She sat on the sofa, staring blankly at the fire until Wolfie padded over to her, placing one paw on the sofa and whimpering at Ingrid. It took her a moment, but she eventually patted the sofa question and Wolfie climbed up next to her, curling up and keeping beady eyes on her. Slowly, her hand lifted and rested on his furry head, a miniscule hint of a smile on her face for a second. Wolfie was smart, using his ability to turn into something comforting and nonthreatening. "Sit down, you're making me antsy." Vlad obeyed instinctively, sitting down in front of the fire he had been pacing in front of minutes before. He was ansty himself, he wanted to bring Morgan back from dust just to destroy him again. He wanted to hold Ingrid tight, protect her from all the bad in the world and he was done trying to convince himself it was a brotherly thing. It didn't matter, he would do his best to be whatever Ingrid needed now, she needed him whether she ever admitted it out loud or not.

Adam was quiet, though the tension in the air was obvious and the only sounds an occasional huff from Wolfie, the crackle of the fire and Adam breathing or moving jigsaw pieces. "Adam, lets go get some food, I think Wolfies good right now." Ingrid left blood in here, he knew that and pulled it out, leaving the bottle and glass near the sofa for her and leaving with his brother. Ingrid didn't even look up, but Wolfie wouldn't leave her side, he was certain of that. Stomach still in knots, he stared at his food and sipped at his goblet of soya. "I just... Dusting was too good for him, I didn't even think, just acted so I could get to her. I should have seen her leave, should have been faster." "Vlad!" Adam interrupted his ranting, catching his attention. "You didn't know this was going to happen, it wasn't your fault. Just like it wasn't Ingrid's fault. It was the bastard that did it, and you killed him. Ingrid needs you to be tough enough for both of you now, don't lose yourself." "How do you get to be so smart?" Adam smiled tightly, taking a pull on his juice. "After it happened to that girl, mum sat me and George down and explained it all to us, she's always made sure we knew how to be good people. And the main thing - it was nobody's fault but the person responsible. You weren't responsible for what he did, you're responsible for taking care of your sister now."

Adam took himself off to bed soon after, saying he wanted Ingrid to feel less surrounded if he could help it. Watching him go, Vlad flitted back towards the living room but walked in slowly, not wanting to startle her. Ingrid didn't look like she had moved, but the glass he had left was half full now so she had at least done that. Placing his untouched dinner on the floor, Wolfie slid down and ate it for him. "Do you want him to sleep next to you? I don't mind taking a different coffin." Ingrid shook her head, standing up unsteadily and Vlad held out a hand for her to steady herself automatically. She let go as soon as she was upright, leaning down to pick up and drain her glass. Lifting the now cleaned plate to avoid it getting stepped on, Vlad followed Ingrid - who was escorted by Wolfie - upstairs, under the guise of letting Wolfie into his room while he had no thumbs. Ingrid slowly sat in their coffin, watching him pick up his sleepwear. "Stay? I don't... I don't think I can sleep alone." The waver in her voice made him ache, and he nodded before leaving for the bathroom to change and brush his teeth. Her clothes were a charred pile on the floor, which he lifted away so she wouldn't have to see them in the evening.

Dropping his own clothes next to the laundry and his crown on his desk, Vlad hesitantly climbed into the coffin next to her and waited. Ingrid lay down, so he copied her and gave her the choice to close the lid. She did eventually, jumping when the wood on wood sound filled the air. He couldn't find his way to sleep, worried Ingrid might need him somehow. "Vlad?" "I'm here." Ingrid didn't speak again, but painstakingly slowly moved closer, curling up against his chest and he could feel tears damp on his shirt. Gently, wary of spooking her, Vlad wrapped an arm around her and just let her cry it out. "I'm sorry I didn't see you leave." Ingrid's fingers curled tight in his shirt, and she started shaking again. "Was only about five minutes. I checked. Felt like hours." "I'm still sorry." Ingrid slowly stopped shaking again, but her fingers didn't loosen where they held his shirt, nails digging in to his skin but if it helped, he wouldn't stop her. "Don't be. You found me, dusted him and broke pure argentalium. Impressive for a wimpire like you." Chuckling slightly, Vlad heard the short exhalation Ingrid made when she was a tiny bit amused but wouldn't admit it. "Try to sleep? I'm not going anywhere." Ingrid hummed low under her breath, but Vlad felt her relax a little bit and when he looked down, he could just about see her eyes were closed. Even asleep, her fingers didn't loosen but at least she knew he was there.

-YD-

 **The Van Helsing thing was an idea I had for one of my other stories, but it just sort of seemed to fit in here.**

 **As for Ingrid... It'll count for something, I promise!**


	19. Dealing

**Aaaand back again! I swear I meant to be done in fifteen chapters, and now I'm almost at twenty and not done. Whoops.**

-YD-

Vlad vaguely slipped into sleep, but it didn't last long when he woke with a jolt of pain. Looking down, it appeared Ingrid had flamed him in her sleep. Her face was taut with pain, and while he didn't think it was the best idea ever he shook her awake. She jerked awake with a cry of "no!", eyes wide as she looked around. Clicking the coffin lid open before he choked on the smoke from his singed t-shirt, Vlad placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Hey, you were having a bad dream. Its gone now, just me see?" Ingrid slowly calmed down, then looked at his t-shirt. "Did I do that?" "In your sleep, I'll live. Not sure the t-shirt survived though." Ingrid watched as he climbed up to pull off the burnt fabric, then stood up shakily as she eyed the mark on his chest. "I'm sorry." Smiling softly at her, Vlad shrugged. "I'm fine. Just... Not letting you sleep in the coffin with me and a stake. Plus, you're the one who said not to complain about a little bit of charring."

Ingrid chuckled a little, then her face fell back to blank again. Pulling on a clean, unburnt top, Vlad stood waiting to see what Ingrid was going to do. "Do you want to go back to sleep, or no?" "Don't think I can." Holding a hand out to help her step out of the coffin, Vlad was surprised when she held him tight again. Returning the embrace gently, Vlad wished he knew how to fix this. "I'd offer to mindwipe you if I could. Unfortunately I care about you too much." Ingrid gripped him harder, shaking in his arms. "Wouldn't stop it hurting." "How do you mean?" Ingrid wriggled free of his hold, lifting his hooded jumper off and he saw the bruises on her arms. Sadness gave way to anger when she turned and raised her shirt, bruising across her back too. "Dusting was too good for him, he didn't deserve to get off that easy."

"He's gone. Its done." Ingrid dropped her shirt and turned back to him, but he took hold of her arm before she could cover up under the jumper again. "I understand if you can't handle me touching your back where you can't see me, but at least let me heal those?" The finger shaped marks on her arms couldn't be helping, and he hated that she had to be marked inside and out. Ingrid swallowed heavily, then nodded shakily. Moving slowly, Vlad brushed his lips over the marks and watched as they faded away, leaving her arms unmarred. Rubbing his thumbs over her pale skin, he stepped back so she could cover herself up again. She scrambled back into the jumper, wrapping her arms around herself. "Thanks." "I only wish I could make it all better that easily."

She meandered downstairs, slow and wary, but he stayed by her side the whole time until she walked into the living room, snapping her fingers to light the fire. Ingrid pushed him to lie down on the sofa, then curled up against him and whimpered quietly. "Why can't I make it stop inside my head?" Stroking a gentle hand across her temple, Vlad didn't know how to answer her. "I don't know, but I won't ever stop protecting you, I promise. I just wish I had before." Ingrid didn't answer him, and when he looked down again she was asleep on him. Adam woke earlier than usual, unrestrained by daylight yet and found Vlad watching her sleep. "Bad day?" "She flamed me in her sleep, but I told her I wouldn't leave her. I'm just glad she's getting more sleep." The halfling draped a blanket over Ingrid and him, some kind of human instinct towards a sleeping family member he supposed.

"Want me to get your soya bottle?" "Yeah, thanks." Vlad still found it odd watching his doppelganger brother walk around, after getting used to having no reflection for years here was this carbon copy of him. His brother uncorked and handed the bottle to the hand Vlad didn't have around the sleeping Ingrid, and Vlad took a grateful gulp. "Can you go wake Wolfie, remind him not to be loud or boisterous with her?" "Sure. I'll make sure he eats before he decides to spend the night with paws again." Smiling gratefully at his brother, Vlad put his bottle down and resumed watching Ingrid rest fitfully. The younger two didn't return until moonlight was prominent, Wolfie on all fours again and Adam had one of his vampire books to read quietly. Wolfie curled up in front of the fire, eyes in Vlad and Ingrid's direction and silence fell again. He could tell by her twitching that Ingrid was waking, and she bolted awake again with wide eyes. "Hey, its just us. You're safe." She relaxed a little, looking around the room.

"Stop looking at me like I'll break." "Ingrid, we are your family. Get used to being cared about." She grumbled, pushing herself upright and Vlad tried not to think of how he missed her against him in light of everything. Wolfie slinked over and nudged Ingrid's hand, then whined and nudged her bottle of blood. "I think Wolfie is saying have some breakfast, do it before he starts barking?" Ingrid scowled, but lifted the bottle and took a long drink anyway. "There, quiet doggy." Wolfie scrambled up into Vlad's lap, but edged his head over to rest on Ingrid's leg. "I think you have your own personal guard dog. And Wolfie too." Vlad glared at Adam for the dog joke - it was some kind of vampire instinct to react to it and even Vlad couldn't ignore it - and then rubbed at Wolfies curled fur. "I wonder what he'll look like when he's older, he looked like a different breed as a baby puppy and he isn't matured yet." Ingrid shrugged, stroking Wolfies head absent mindedly.

"You'll find out, you're studying him aren't you?" "I am indeed Adam, but that doesn't mean I can't speculate about the future now." Adam stretched out along the other sofa, seeing Ingrid relaxing somewhat with both of the other two closer. "Is tonight a check in?" "Yeah, I think I left my phone in the kitchen, can you go get it before we miss the call?" Adam jogged off, returning with the phone just in time for it to ring. Ingrid jumped again when it rang, but they knew better than to make a fuss of it if they valued being not-fireballed. "Hey Jonno, yeah, he's here." Adam handed the phone over with a shrug, mouthing "he wants you". No idea how Jonno could tell their voices apart, everyone except the people present and Adam's family struggled with that, Vlad answered. "What's up?" "Mums game. Wants a time frame for this thing." Grimacing at the reminder he had so many calls on his time, Vlad sighed.

"Not right now. I'm not backing out, but Ingrid was attacked yesterday and I need to stay with her." "Blood and garlic, is she alright?" That was a very loaded question, but Ingrid was watching him closely and Vlad chose the lesser of two evils - lying to Jonno. "Yeah, she's ok. I just can't leave right now, but I swear I'm not playing you. Just... I need time." "Alright. Just, don't be long. Mum is going to think you are tricking us much faster than I would. I hope Ingrid feels better soon." "Thanks Jonno. Til next time." Vlad hung up quickly, knowing Ingrid wanted an explanation as to what Jonno had really called about. "Well?" "I offered Jonno his father back. Mina wanted time to think about it." "You did WHAT?" "They kept most of the alchemy gear from Stokely Castle. I don't regret mindwiping them to save you and dad, but I do regret that Jonno lost his father. I can put that right." "Did your last foray in to alchemy teach you nothing? Other than to never silence me."

"I'm doing this once, to put right something that wouldn't have happened if not for me. Then I will destroy the equipment, and that's it. Done. I didn't give them a complete list of what's needed, and they won't be in the room when I do it. And I won't tell them that until I'm done, so they have him back and know it'll never be something they can replicate." "Its still a ridiculous idea. Only you." "I pride myself on being unique. Or at least I did. Until I found my twin over there." "We aren't twins! Just look a little similar. Or maybe a lot similar." "Oh good garlic, do stop talking." Smiling at Ingrid alongside Adam grinning too, Vlad was happy to see her snappy spark appear a little. Even if it was just to tell them to shut up.

"So, other than tell me to study again because my transformation is just over a month away, what shall we do with your day off?" "Ingrid?" "I want you to stop staring at me like I'm going to explode into dust if you stop watching." Vlad had struggled to keep his eyes off Ingrid before, now it was a compulsion. Sighing, Vlad stroked over her hand gently and shifted Wolfie so he could stand up. Adam followed him to the table, and kindly let Vlad sit the side that let Ingrid stay in the side of his vision as they set up the game board. Having not really slept himself, Vlad was tired and antsy all night, rubbing occasionally at the burn healing on his chest and stomach too nervous to eat properly. Ingrid didn't eat either, but a doe eyed Wolfie whined and huffed and nudged until she drank some blood at each mealtime before he would even eat for himself.

Adam took Wolfie up to bed before dawn broke, and Vlad waited to see if Ingrid wanted to be alone, sleep in their coffin or stay on the sofa. "What?" His loitering apparently irritated Ingrid. "I just didn't know if you wanted to sleep, or be alone or stay here." Ingrid looked up at the closed window, the UV filtered sunlight telling them morning was breaking. "Oh, its dawn. Didn't realise. Yeah, coffin time." She let him help her up, but then dropped his hand and Vlad tried not to feel rejected - he had sworn he would be what she needed now to himself. He changed and cleaned his teeth quickly, leaving Ingrid to her privacy in the bathroom while he examined the burn on his chest. "Does it hurt?" Dropping his shirt back down, Vlad smiled. "I've had worse, don't worry about me." Ingrid slowly made her way closer to him, lifting his shirt back up to examine the mark. "Does it hurt?" Sighing at her persistence, Vlad didn't lie. Much. "A little." It hurt a fair bit, but it was nothing in the scheme of Ingrid trusting him to sleep next to her after what happened.

If he had a heartbeat, it would have thundered in anticipation as Ingrid leaned in and kissed the mark, brushing over the burn until it stopped hurting and healed over to a faint pink scar that would fade away completely within a day. "Thanks." He stood stock still when Ingrid looked up at his face, pressing the faintest meeting of lips he had ever felt to the corner of his mouth. "Sleep?" "Yeah." Ingrid curled up over his chest again, and in spite of his exhaustion Vlad couldn't help but lie watching her sleep for half the day, hoping it was a little less traumatic today than yesterday for her. He was just drifting off himself when Ingrid jerked awake, though she didn't burn him this time. "It's ok, you're safe." was fast becoming habit to say to her, hoping to soothe her a little. "Vlad?" "I'm here." Ingrid slowly settled back down, relaxing against him and he waited for her to fall back asleep before he let himself find slumber for a few hours.

When he woke Ingrid was shaking, crying again and he was again filled with a wish to tear Morgan limb from limb and burn each piece with argentalium. Ingrid had always been strong, no matter what, and to see her reduced to this because of some egomaniacal bastard broke his heart. When Will was dusted, she got angry. When anyone doubted her, she proved them wrong. When anyone betrayed her, she got even. He knew how to deal with that, but this was something he had no clue how to fix. All Vlad could do was hold her, hope Ingrid eventually learned to feel safe again. "Why are you here?" "I live here?" It was a strange question, and Vlad said the first thing to come to mind. "I meant here. With me." "Because you asked me to stay." That was another instant thought, because Vlad wouldn't want to be anywhere else if Ingrid needed him. The thought didn't scare him as much as he expected it to.

"Until two days ago, us sharing a coffin usually involved more. So why are you here now?" Understanding what she was getting at more now, Vlad shifted to sit up, holding her eyes so she wouldn't doubt him. "Because you asked me to be here. If that means nothing more than you needing me to feel safe enough to sleep, if it means getting burned or whatever because you're having a nightmare, I'm here. I didn't protect you enough, I won't make that mistake again." Ingrid couldn't meet his eyes for long, but he caught the mutter of "ok" just about. Squeezing her hand gently, Vlad climbed out of the coffin and held his hand out to help Ingrid, who was still a little shaky on her feet at times. He didn't dwell on why because he didn't want to get unreasonably angry, and risk upsetting Ingrid. "If all you want from me is a brother, then that's what I'll be. If all you want me to be is a super powerful security blanket, then that's what I'll be. I'll keep you safe Ingrid, I promise."

Ingrid stood taking in his words for a minute, then shoved his arm and there was a brief smile. "Alright, enough of the deep talk, you sound like a breather." Smiling back, Vlad shrugged. "You spent most of the day on my chest, you'd have noticed if I was breathing. Or you know, had a heartbeat." Ingrid tsked, rolling her eyes and looking over at the bathroom door. "Go ahead, I need to go meditate, come find me when you're done." Ingrid nodded and moved over to the wardrobe, likely to raid his clothes again and he gave her the privacy, heading down to the training room. With the hot anger towards Morgan peaking randomly, it was important he keep himself under control. It was a struggle to let go enough to relax into his medititave state, Ingrid constantly on his mind but he had to stay in control, to protect Ingrid like he promised.

Wolfie was on two legs tonight, and placed his teddy next to Ingrid instead then went to play "Slayer Surgery" with Adam - it involved carefully removing slayer weapons from a vampire, and it beeped if you weren't careful enough. Adam said the human alternative was called "Operation", but the idea was the same. Vlad stayed with Ingrid, letting her nearly crush his hand when the beeping made her jump, but insisted she didn't want them to stop playing - she wanted to master the startle reflex and that was an innocuous way to try. Wolfie cheered eventually, having pulled more tiny plastic stakes and garlic bulbs from the vampire body. Adam steered him over to less noisy games, and Ingrid slowly relaxed against Vlad again. He wasn't sure he would ever get the feeling back in his hand though. She fell into a less fitful nap, and Adam sent Wolfie to get washed up for lunch. "Any better?" "I didn't get burned, and she slept more but it's a little soon to say she definitely had a better day." Adam nodded, looking down at Ingrid sadly for a moment but looking happy enough when Wolfie came bounding back in. "Go on, I got blood and I'm not leaving her." The two left, and Vlad resumed the gentle touch over her hair that seemed to calm her, the tension in her face even sleeping lessening somewhat.

Gulping down the rest of his bottle, Vlad waited for Ingrid to wake up again. She did, instantly on alert but he stayed still, let her come back to herself in her own time. "Feel up to eating today?" "Maybe. Do we have any kidney in?" Mentally running through their kitchen stock, Vlad nodded. "Want me to make you kidney balls? Haven't done that since we were kids and dad told me I should stop learning how to cook." "And you carried on learning anyway, but when mum left there was no need to have them in because dad hates kidney?" Ingrid was smirking a little at the memory, and Vlad could have done a victory dance seeing that on her face again. He knew this was going to be a long, slow process for her to get over, but he didn't doubt for a second Ingrid would beat this in her own time. And as long as she wanted him to be, Vlad would be there. "So, kidney balls?"

Ingrid sat in the kitchen, hands tight around the hot mug of type O and Vlad and Wolfie cracked jokes as he taught the boy how to make them, and Adam watched in mildly disgusted amusement when one of the kidneys popped in Wolfies face. "Come on mucky pup, lets get you cleaned up so Ingrid can eat in peace." Wolfie grumbled but went along, and Vlad smiled to himself as Ingrid finally ate something, and stopped looking so weighed down for a minute. "Have I lost my touch?" "There's always room for improvement, but they are acceptable." Coming from Ingrid, that was a shining commendation and he glowed inside at the 'praise'. In spite of already having eaten lunch, Wolfie was happy to munch on some of the leftover ingredients (the boy seemed immune to getting ill from uncooked food), and Adam was eventually coerced into trying one of Vlad's. "Ok, that wasn't bad. Not sure my mum would appreciate me cooking them." "Here, I'm not that hungry." Vlad actually hated kidney, but he wouldn't let Ingrid eat alone when it took two days to get her to eat at all.

When it came to daybreak, Ingrid actually growled in frustration. "For now, assume I want you to stay next to me while I sleep unless I say otherwise. I can tell you to get lost a lot easier than I can ask you to stay every day." "I just don't want to assume anything. But ok, I'll try to stop hovering." Ingrid pressed another minute kiss to the corner of his mouth before they settled in for the day, and it was a struggle not to react, to kiss her properly but she deserved the right to set her own limits. "I'm sorry." "Unless you poisoned my kidney balls, you have nothing to be sorry about." Vlad had an inkling what Ingrid was trying to apologise for, and didn't want her feeling bad. "I do. I shouldn't have been so distant before the weekend, then you wouldn't have been too upset to stay near me." "It's in the past. I shouldn't have let my feelings cloud my judgement. Then you wouldn't have been alone. We can go back and forth about this for days, or we can just accept that what happened was neither of our faults, it was his." Ingrid shifted to look up at him in the dark, tracing a finger over where they both knew she had bitten him before. "I'm sorry I'm broken." "You aren't. He wasn't strong enough to break you."

-YD-

 **Sort of family chapter? Mostly it was exploring Ingrid and everyone starting to deal with what happened to her, the story will move on again more next chapter.**


	20. Alchemy

**Been and done an update for Chosen Two, now I don't feel guilty updating this daily.**

-YD-

Hanging up the phone after Jonno called, Vlad sighed and looked at Ingrid asleep with dog- Wolfie on her lap. "Bad news?" "Not technically, but I have to go back to England. Again. Half the time it doesn't seen to make sense to have moved. Though I do like the privacy, the space, the freedom of this place. And right now, that's the best thing for Ingrid." Adam patted him on the shoulder, then rubbed at his jaw again. "When do you have to go?" "Tomorrow night. I gotta pick up that convict and convince both sides not to ash him. And since I am going there anyway Mina expects me to hold up my offer about Van Helsing - apparently a week is long enough for me to put it off. I would say you should come, but you're reaching the last few weeks and it's gonna be tough." "I know. Plus, someone's gotta watch Wolfie." Vlad sighed to himself again, downing his glass of soya. "Good job he doesn't smell edible to a vampire. Ideal for a vampire babysitter."

Adam huffed at the term, and Vlad resumed looking at Ingrid in concern. "You love her don't you?" Adam looked deep in thought when he turned back to his brother. "She's my sister, of course I do." "No, I mean you really love her. You barely leave her side, she's set fire to you in her sleep twice, busted your rib, bit you, woke you up at least twice a day. And all you do is keep watching to check she's alright. You don't even complain, when it must hurt." Vlad hadn't actually considered the fact he was still falling for Ingrid, having spent almost the entire time she was resisting him just trying to stay sane. And now it didn't matter, what mattered was keeping her safe. "Its not like that. The only two people Ingrid tried to trust after dad made a point of making her feel surplus to requirements are either dust or betrayed her. If she can trust me this much after what happened, I won't let her down."

His brother didn't react to the words for a while, watching Ingrid sleep in a perfectly brotherly way. "Alright. But for what its worth, the idea doesn't freak me out nearly as much as it did when I first came here. And you haven't actually told Wolfie you aren't really together. You're good for her." Adam left him stood there in disbelief, heading off to the training room to work off his excess energy while Vlad kept watch over the two sleeping. Did he love her that way? He had himself convinced it was physical, that he was taking it too personally when Ingrid would leave before he was awake. Looking at her now, face almost relaxed for the first time in over a week, his chest ached. She was more than attractive, she was beautiful. He didn't just want her, he needed her. And this wasn't wrong, it was right. "I love you" it fell from his mouth without conscious thought, and it was probably a very good thing Ingrid and Wolfie were both unconscious or he would have explaining to do. What surprised him the most was that it wasn't as earth shattering as he thought it should be, like it was waiting for him to accept it.

This made what he was planning somewhat awkward, especially with Adam apparently suspecting there was more to them than brother and sister doing each other a favour. Rolling the rings between his hands, it was a miracle the VHC hadn't destroyed them. But then, they were supposed to execute Adze for trying to kill him, instead they had let her take her father's seat temporarily. The shattered gem made them useless as weapons, but they were still linked. Ingrid woke soon after his epiphany, calming down a little faster than usual. "Hey, how you feeling?" "Irritated you keep asking me that you clingy scab." "So, feeling yourself then?" Ingrid rolled her eyes, but he saw the softening as she looked down at Wolfie asleep next to her. "I thought you would approve, since it's a forbidden dark weapon technically. I want you to wear this." Ingrid looked down at the ring in confusion. "A little late for us to start wearing betrothal rings?" "Its not for that. The rings are psychic, linked together. If you wear that, I'll always be able to find you. And that's the ring of the mother, so everyone else can see it as me promising never to control you."

Vlad held up the ring of the son, still broken. "Not that they work anymore, but I figured you would appreciate that they almost killed me and Erin. Plus they suit your style." Ingrid stared at it a little while longer, then slid it on to her ring finger anyway. "May as well keep up appearances." "Thank you. Now the actual question, I have to go to England tomorrow. Are you up for it, or are you staying here?" "Is this for Jonno?" Hesitantly sitting next to Ingrid, he felt her grip his hand. "That too, but I have that seventeen year old Lecushka kid to pick up before the guild gets too anxious. Two fangs, one bite and all that." "I'll go. But you can take the kid to the VHC yourself." "Absolutely. I'll drop you home first, then go wait and see what the blood mirror makes of him." Ingrid nodded, squeezing then releasing his hand. "Thanks. For making a little effort not to be too overbearing." "I am trying. I just, I want you to feel safe." Careful not to jostle the sleeping dog, Ingrid grabbed his arm and pulled him closer.

He went slowly, keeping eye contact so he could see Ingrid wasn't scared. "I do feel safe. With you. Perk of your brother being the Chosen One, I know nobody can overpower you." Looking down at Ingrid's bright eyes, Vlad felt the same ache in his chest, like his heart wanted to beat again. "That's not true. You can." He waited, letting her close the distance between them slowly, perfectly as he got to kiss the girl he loved. Ingrid pushed him away after a few seconds, but it didn't matter - it was progress. "I can't..." "It's fine. Really." Vlad couldn't help smiling at her, hoping she knew he wasn't going to push her. Wolfie stirred next to them and Vlad backed off, but he couldn't quite keep his eyes off Ingrid again. The half-ling dog nuzzled at Vlad's hand and whined for attention, quieting only when Vlad scratched behind his ears. "I am almost tempted - almost - to steal some of the dogs chew toys, this teething thing is driving me mad!"

Vlad tried to act casual, or at least not demand to know how long Adam had been standing nearby. "Its like a month until your transformation, vamp up! You're a Dracula." Adam grumbled, chewing on his sleeve and twitching. "Trust me, the discomfort will seem like nothing when your fangs actually come true. Bats, I thought someone had made me drink argentalium spray." "Really? I thought it felt pretty good. Kind of a relief." Vlad couldn't help smirking, and adding a typical "maybe my fangs are just bigger than yours" to it. "Keep telling yourself that. I still say your skin is too pink." Vlad pretended to be heartily offended, checking his hands and arms were still pale. Adam kept prodding at his teeth, no matter how many times Vlad told him it wouldn't help. "Part and parcel of turning into a vampire. Go suck on an ice cube or something."

"Will that help?" "A little." Adam literally ran off to the kitchen, and Ingrid chuckled a little as Wolfie chased him, wondering what the excitement was. "I do not miss puberty." "With your baby face, puberty missed you." "I happen to think I'm all grown up. I should hope you thought so too." Ingrid hmm-ed, gesturing for Vlad to hand her the bottle near his leg. "Well? I'm not handing this over until you agree." Ingrid swallowed thickly, then moved closer to him. Keeping his hands firmly by his sides, Vlad could only stare as Ingrid leaned in, breathing against his neck. "Oh, I know you're all grown up." Her mouth brushed over the air in front of his, and Vlad couldn't help but groan quietly, "uhhh" the range of words he could form as Ingrid plucked the bottle from his hands and leant back with a smirk. "That's playing dirty." "You expect anything else from me?" They both blinked when Adam coughed nearby, and Vlad wondered again just how long he had been there.

"Going by his frantic scrabbling near the cupboards, I think Wolfie is trying to say its lunch. You guys joining us?" Ingrid shook her head, holding up her bottle. "Go eat, you're looking scrawnier than usual." Vlad didn't want to move away from her but that may have been her way of saying "go away, I want space" so he went. Adam didn't speak much as they made lunch, but when Wolfie was noisily sticking his face in the bowl on the floor, Vlad had a feeling he knew what was coming. "Why is Ingrid wearing a ring now?" That wasn't the question he was expecting, and Vlad leapt to answer. "Its one of the rings of Arianhrod. I realise that means very little to you, but basically I keep hold of this one" Vlad held up the other ring "and I can use it to find the other one. They are linked, even though this one is broken. So Ingrid knows I can find her even if I'm not with her, because I can't ignore the outside world forever."

Adam held out a hand and examined the ring of the son, taking Vlad's warning not to put it on. "That's pretty cool. How did this one get broken?" Vlad slowly went into more depth on the story of Adze, and Erin and almost getting killed, and Erin actually getting killed. "Wow. I can see why you were both keen to avoid our father setting you up again." He had briefly explained it before, but he imagined Adam hadn't expected it all. "Still, it's cool that it left you something to keep track of Ingrid so she knows you can always find her. Is she going with you tomorrow?" "Yeah. I'll leave my phone here, you can call Jonno if you need us. And if he says we left, you know we will be back soon, Ingrid isnt up to going to the VHC yet so I'll be dropping her home on my way there." Ingrid ate at least once a night now, and joined them for dinner which Vlad chalked up as more progress.

Bidding the other two a pleasant days sleep, Vlad went to change for coffin time. "Can you... Will you see if the bruises are gone? They still hurt a little." Trying to keep his touch feather light, Vlad lifted her shirt and kept an eye on the tight line of her shoulders. "They are fading, but still there. How hard did he hit you?" "It wasn't that. He held me down." Vlad pulled her shirt back down, then moved where she could see him again. "He can't get to you now, I'll keep you safe." Ingrid leaned in to him, shaking slightly in his arms. "I know." Vlad rubbed his thumb over the ring she had on - it may not mean what he wanted it to, but part of him was still singing about Ingrid wearing the ring he offered. "Come on, get some sleep before we go play with a corpse." "Lovely image." Vlad smiled unrepentantly, the grin feeling permanent when Ingrid kissed him again, even if it was for just a few seconds. "I thought you liked life in the dead lane."

"Doesn't mean I'm itching to see the slayer from Stokely again." Vlad shrugged, settling into the coffin and waiting for Ingrid to go change and join him. "Don't read too much into this, it's only because you're the Chosen One." Ingrid mumbled as she curled up on his chest, making him chuckle. "Well, it had to have a perk eventually." "Shut up and sleep coffin breath." Resisting the urge to point out he had excellent oral hygiene, and that Ingrid would know that better than anyone, Vlad closed his eyes. Ingrid only woke him once that day, and aside from her shakes it was a relatively mild wake up and she fell back asleep fairly quickly. He dressed quickly in the bathroom, cleaned his fangs and sat putting together the things he would need for the day while Ingrid dressed herself. There was something amusing about shoving his council robes and crown in a backpack, the things that gave him status in the vampire world basically luggage in the human world.

Hearing the bathroom door open behind him, Vlad called out to Ingrid "you want me to pack blood or you going to demand a slayer open up a vein?" "Where's the fun in them donating if I can't get fresh service?" Turning to smile at her, Vlad was caught short. Ingrid had worn mostly his hoodies since the networking weekend incident, so seeing her back in full Ingrid battle dress was a surprise. "Wow." Ingrid looked at him strangely, but then she didn't know Vlad was feeling like this was all for the first time again, now he knew he loved her. "What?" "You look beautiful. I think Jonno is going to have a coronary." Ingrid rolled her eyes, watching him pack his backpack up. Standing in front of her, Vlad couldn't help but ask "can I?" His eyes were fixed on her mouth, never before appreciating just how appealing the deep shade of red was on her. "Don't smudge the art." He felt like a nervous teenager, leaning down to kiss her gently. It was almost more willpower than he had to pull away after a few seconds, but Ingrid seemed to be doing better today and he wasn't about to risk that because he couldn't control himself.

"Not sure it suits you as much as it does me." Vlad swiped at his mouth, a faint red smear on his hand. "Gone?" Ingrid didn't answer, smirking as he followed her downstairs and he swiped at his mouth again just in case. "Someone is back on their game! You look lovely sis." Adam smiled up at them from the breakfast table, Wolfie sat opposite him. To Adam's credit, he didn't look as horrified as usual with Wolfie eating maggots in front of him. "Humour me. What do you do if the door knocks?" "Don't answer it." "What if dad turns up and invites an army of assassins in?" "Bolt up in the training room because it has reinforced doors and call Jonno to tell you. And last but not least, don't burn the castle down. This isn't the first time you guys have left us alone together, chill Vlad." Giving Adam a playful shove to the shoulder, Vlad pushed a soya bottle into his bag and handed Adam his phone. "I worry. Bite me. I'll back before daybreak with Ingrid at least. Behave my little brothers." "We will!"

Feeling Ingrid grip his hand as they went to stand outside before they shifted, Vlad looked over at her, pale and perfect under the moonlight. "Are you sure you're up to this?" "Yeah. Just. Don't go far." He couldn't imagine what it cost Ingrid to say that out loud, admitting she needed him near. "I won't leave your side. Promise." He was faster but flew alongside her the whole way, and Jonno was waiting at the entrance to the guild for them. "Hey guys. Hows Adam?" "Grumpy, he's teething." Anyone who didn't know who Adam was would think they were discussing a baby, not an almost sixteen year old. Ingrid kept hold of his hand as they walked along, so Vlad whispered to Jonno that she was still a little jumpy. Mina was waiting outside a room for them, surveying them almost coldly. "We got everything on your list. Is this going to work?" "Absolutely. Where's the dimidius? Once I've seen he's ok we can start." Mina opened the door behind her and led them in.

The convicted killer was not what he expected, a thin, pale boy with short scruffy hair, glasses and looking utterly desolate. "Let me guess, more people to tell me I'm a vampire." The boy was cuffed, a slayer holding a garlic gas cannister nearby. "That's right. I can't imagine what a surprise and how crazy it all must be to you, but I promise it's all true. I'm Vlad, this is my sister Ingrid." "Neil. Neil Parks. What is all this? I know I have the so-called vampire disease but vampires aren't real!" The fastest way to do this would be to hypnotize him and dump him in front of the blood mirror, but Vlad didn't want to do that if he could help it. "Look, I'll show you." Vlad pointed to show his teeth were flat, then closed and reopened his mouth to show his fangs. Retracting them again quickly, Vlad kept his tone gentle. "I saw your police report, you said you didn't know where the fire came from?" "Yeah, but nobody believes me!" "We do. Watch this." Vlad held his palm out, waiting until Neil looked properly to roll a fireball between his fingers.

"Whoa. So what happens to me now? These guys don't seem like the type to befriend bitey monsters." "This is a slayers guild. There is a peace treaty between us and them, and a couple of vampire brothers went out and intentionally impregnated human women to create others like you, we call you dimidius. I'll explain more later, I owe the guild a favour. Just try to stay calm, I'm honestly here to help you." Neil didn't look like he believed Vlad, scared green eyes magnified behind his glasses. He didn't want to leave the boy cuffed, but the argentalium was probably the only thing stopping random spurts of power coming out of him. "What are you going to do with him?" "Take him to the clan mirror so he can transform. Explain the choice he can make. If he chooses to stay a vampire, then he's the first we've found and he will have the Lecushka land and property to live on, and share with any others who make the same choice. The same rules will apply, if he hurts humans afterwards he's all yours but he didn't ask for this. And honestly, he doesn't look like a psychotic killer."

Jonno nodded, leading them back down to the room with the table. Everything he had asked Mina for was there, including the muddy coffin Vlad didn't really want to have to open. "Anything else?" "I need Jonno's blood, and a small amount of another slayers blood. Bagged works for Jonno, the slayer blood has to be fresh." Mina didn't look convinced, but pulled out a syringe and drew her own blood there and then. "Enough?" "Yeah. You should go, you shouldn't see him like that. Plus it probably won't smell great, and we don't need to breathe." Jonno handed Vlad a box, full of bagged blood with his name on. "You may want to get him some clean clothes, four years is a long time for the same outfit." "Lovely image Ingrid. Come on." His friend pulled his mother away, letting Vlad close the door. "Right. Lets do this." "Corpse is all yours, I'll sort the blood mixture." "Oh thanks." Ingrid smirked, putting one bag aside to drink and dumping the others into the big vats at the end.

"I still owe you a day in the sun for that stunt you pulled with my diary. Nice poem though." Vlad tried for an apologetic smile as he braced himself to open the coffin. "Well, I can generate lightning now, so can you. Dad can't, did you know? I mean, he can make it storm outside but he can't do it from his hands like we can." Ingrid looked surprised as she finished dispensing the blood and added the other gross things necessary. Biting his finger, Vlad dropped his own blood in too - that wasn't on Mina's list. Sucking his finger so it healed over, Vlad turned back to the unearthed coffin. "Right. Don't stake me from beyond the grave sir." Vlad pushed the coffin lid open, holding his breath and in spite of the collection of bones that had littered his life, this was still disgusting. Skeletal by now, he actually had to make return trips to get all the pieces on the table. "Remind me to shower, garlic thats disgusting. Do you want lever or conductors?"

"I saw you fry those rat tails, I'll get the lever." "When that dial turns green, ease it in and step back." Ingrid gripped the lever and looked at the dial, so Vlad called up the feeling of lightning in his palms and pressed them to the conductors. It would have been better to have a storm and a proper generator hooked in to this, but this would do and that would have been a lot of work for a one off. Keeping an eye on Ingrid, he saw her nod to him. As she pushed the lever down, they both stepped back and watched as the admittedly revolting process went on. Tissue and muscle grew over the bones, filling out with organs and skin coming up to cover it all. The last piece of it all was the sound of a heartbeat beginning, then the body of Eric Van Helsing breathed. "Quick, tear out the elements for the conductors underneath, I'll bust the pipes at the back." Ingrid ducked down as Vlad moved to crush the metal fixtures, ensuring the table wouldn't work again without them repairing it.

Pulling the door open, Vlad brushed a bit of mummified skin off his jumper with a grimace. "He's all yours. It worked." Jonno and Mina stared at the table, then Jonno literally jumped on Vlad. "Thank you." "No need. Just putting things right. Now for the honesty - We broke the table, and you didn't have the complete list of ingredients. This isn't to be messed with, but I owed you this. Keys?" Mina tossed Vlad Neil's fang cuff keys, not even blinking in response to the rest of his words. "We'll be taking Neil, we need to get back. He's no longer mindwiped either, and as healthy as he was before the vampires killed him. Enjoy having your dad back Jonno." Vlad grabbed Ingrid's hand as they moved away from the reunited family, leaping back up to the room Neil was in. "You guys reek!" "Alchemy does that. We're just going to finish our drinks, then you'll be getting out of here." Ingrid stuck her usual straw in the bag of blood, complaining she only got Jonno when she was here. Vlad chuckled as he swigged his soya, Neil watching them both in confusion and the guard grimacing.

"I have the keys, once they are unlocked he's officially my responsibility." The guard clearly wasn't happy, a scowl on the dark skinned man's face but Vlad suspected he had strict orders. And permission to bear a weapon in front of them. Checking Ingrid was done, Vlad didn't want Neil accidentally flaming him mid flight and sighed before hypnotising the boy. "He's just tranced, I need him not going crazy on the return flight. We're leaving now, thanks for keeping an eye on him." Vlad led the out of it seventeen year old behind them, nodding at the exit guards as they got outside. "Lets get back, I need to get the smell of slayer off me before I vomit." Vlad agreed, squeezing Ingrids hand again before shifting with the dimidius in his arms and they headed back to Transylvania. "Ew you guys smell bad." "Cheers Wolfie. I'm just gonna leave him there, watch him for the minute I need to go change out of corpse clothes." The two young halflings stood watching the zombiefied stranger while Vlad leapt up to his room, stripping out of his clothes quickly. "Anyone would think you were expecting to get lucky." Vlad restrained himself from making a bad joke, pulling on comfortable clothes to wear under his robes.

"You okay?" "Mmm. I'm going to shower. Will you... Will you be back by dawn?" Vlad realised he needed to be, so Ingrid wouldn't be alone. "Bats. Neil can sleep here today, I'll take him out tonight. I'm not leaving you. Go shower, I'm going to go sedate and recuff the kid. He'll never know!" Vlad could scarcely believe what he was saying, but Neil could probably do with the sleep and Ingrid needed him. "Come back, I want these marks off me?" Ingrid just about managed to spit the words out, before turning and heading into the bathroom. Realising what she meant, Vlad dashed off. "Thanks guys, carry on with what you were doing." Vlad lifted the hypnotized half vampire over his shoulder and flitted him to the alchemy cupboard - scarcely touched since they moved in. He probably should have felt more guilty for this, but it was the kindest way to incapacitate the teen and any other vampire would probably leave him cuffed and conscious and worried. Fixing handcuffs on him as he fell asleep, Vlad tucked him into a guest coffin.

Returning to Ingrid, she was staring at the shower, still dressed. "Ingrid?' Vlad made sure not to creep up behind her, stepping into her peripheral vision slowly. "I'm deciding if I want your help or not." Vlad almost jumped at the words, but kept himself calm. "Start small, kick me out if it's too much?" Ingrid inclined her head in agreement, so Vlad smiled gently and started slowly as he knelt down. "I don't know how you put these on so fast." was his only comment as he unbuckled her boots, keeping an eye on her face for concern as he did so. "Practice. You would know if you wore things other than basketball shoes." Vlad liked his Converse, he refused to give them up. "Alright?" "That was the easy one." Vlad stood back up, kissing her cheek softly and smiling when she turned her face to meet his lips. Keeping his eyes on hers, Vlad lifted his hands to the top button of her dress. "Tell me to stop and I will." "I know." Sliding the first one loose, Ingrid didn't so much as blink, even relaxing a little as he worked down the next two.

"Still alright?" "You'll know if I'm not." Maintaining eye contact was a real effort as he moved down another button, the fabric starting to fall open and reveal inches of porcelain skin, the curve of her chest beneath his hands now. Ingrid started shaking as he went for the next one, so Vlad stepped back and held his hands up to show he wasn't a threat. "Too much?" Ingrid nodded, dropping her head. "Hey, it's fine. Want me to leave?" She shook her head then, slowly working her way down the buttons herself. "Just get them off me." Ingrid turned away before the dress dropped, showing the fading marks on her skin. She was still shaking, but Vlad doubted that would stop with him behind her. "Its just me, you're safe here." He whispered as he leaned in, feeling her freeze up as his mouth touched the bruising, but Vlad knew Ingrid wanted these marks gone and slowly persevered. "All gone. I'll go wait through there for the bathroom." Closing the door behind him, Vlad sighed and sat cross legged on their coffin. He was too wound up to meditate, but he could try to calm down a bit.

Ingrid came out a while later, back in his baggy jumpers and jeans, makeup washed away and the tension clear on her face. "All yours." Vlad figured he may as well change for the coffin now as he grabbed his stuff and went to rinse away the residual garlic and death smell on his skin. He wasn't ashamed to admit he rushed, wanting to get back to Ingrid. Clean, dry and dressed again, Vlad went back through and found Ingrid curled up in a ball, arms wrapped tight around her knees. "Drink something and then we can go to sleep if you want?" Ingrid drank from the bottle he handed her without a word, but didn't otherwise move as Vlad sat in the coffin next to her. "When does this go away?" "It's going to take time. You will make it through, you are the strongest person I've ever met." "Coming from you, that's basically just sarcasm." Vlad sighed, shuffling to sit where she could see his face. "I'm not talking about power, I said strongest. Nothing has ever broken you, and Morgan will not be the thing that does. Look at me, it took me a year and a half to face my reflection, and I still lost control. You didn't. You're stronger than I could ever be, and you damn well know it." Ingrid finally moved, slowly unfurling and looking at him expectantly until he took his usual position. She curled up on him again, shaky and clutching his shirt, but there was a mumble of "damn right I know it" as she got comfortable and closed her eyes.

-YD-

 **I don't know if this is what I could call a happy chapter... But it probably is in comparison to what's coming! Hehe**


	21. Chance

**I have tea, a huge pile of sweets and some fanfiction to write, lets do this!**

-YD-

"Ow!" Vlad knew Ingrid was asleep, not actually trying to set him alight but that didn't stop it being a painful return to consciousness. Ingrid growled in frustration, upset with herself - it had been a few days now since she had attacked him in her sleep. She wouldn't answer when he asked if that meant a nightmare or not though. "Better me than the wooden box we sleep in though, right?" Ingrid smiled a little, and Vlad was more than happy to forgive her when she kissed him in apology. It was hesitant and Ingrid occasionally got a little shaky if she overestimated her limits, but Vlad was careful not to lose himself in her soft lips. "No real harm done. Except to my wardrobe. If I didn't know better I would say its all a plot of yours to destroy my colourful clothes." The t-shirt he stripped off was dark green, and didn't really fit him anymore but Ingrid still hated colour.

"Yep, you got me." Ingrid eyed the mark on his chest, and Vlad made himself hold still as her hand traced around it. It stung, but after a particularly bad day when Ingrid had lashed out and cracked his rib, Vlad had a new appreciation for pain tolerance. "Don't apologise, this isn't your fault." She was getting better at meeting his eyes, and Vlad wondered if the emotional revelation was there in his face - he hadn't come out and said it, but that didn't mean Ingrid didn't know. It wasn't important though, as long as Ingrid felt safer with him he would do his best to deserve that. "Go shower, you smell like smoke." Smiling down at Ingrid, Vlad nodded and picked up clean clothes for the night. The water stung a little, but it was worth Ingrid sleeping next to him by far.

"So, how did Neil Lechuska - garlic that is a stupid name for a vampire - take the dimidius choice chat?" "I think it was a little overwhelming, he's had his whole life changed in all of a week and now he only has six months to decide if he wants it to stay that way. Still, he transformed fine, and he likes the castle well enough. Plus he has a sister moving in tomorrow." Lily West was a lot like Ingrid, fiery temper and dark attitude, sixteen and absolutely thrilled to find out she could become a vampire. She also had been in trouble for arson - Vlad's hunch on criminal records was turning out to be fruitful. And the fact the first two transforming dimidius teens were criminals had actually been a plus to some of the VHC members. Vlad was expected to explain himself - for Adam, for cancelling the networking weekend, the last two council meetings and just dropping in and out with two dimidius vampires. But he had a few days - the next meeting.

Ingrid left him to shower herself, buttoning her shirt as she left the bathroom and smirking when she caught Vlad looking. "Careful, you're drooling." Vlad grinned back, stepping closer to her. "Can you blame me?" There was a flicker of doubt on her face that would never have been there before, but then Ingrid shone through as she hit him with a look that could have floored ten men. "No, it is me after all." Forcing his eyes to stay up on her face in spite of her still-open shirt, Vlad kissed her gently and moved over to his desk to check all his reports were in order and finished. "Are you coming to this meeting? I'll make your excuses if you aren't up to it, and Roque will sit between you and Vaskow so the table isn't one short." Ingrid sat filing her nails while she waited for him, contemplating his question. "I'm going. I worked to get on the council, he's not taking that from me." Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, Vlad brushed a kiss over her temple. "I'm proud of you. And I'll appreciate the view too, I don't think the others are my type." Ingrid nudged him off her, but she was still smiling.

"I don't think anyone has ever said that to me before." "That I'm proud of you? I have been since we were kids. No matter how many people try to slow you down, make you feel less important, you have never let them. Plus you've always kept me on my toes, I wouldn't have gotten this far without you. I mean, who got me through the early days at council? You." The smile on Ingrid's face could have lit up the room, blinding in it's intensity as she kissed him again. "Alright, enough of the gooey stuff before you break into 'somewhere over the rainbow'." Vlad smiled back, pressing a kiss against her hair and holding the door open for her. Ingrid rolled her eyes but walked through it, beckoning him to follow her. Wolfie could clearly detect the change in Ingrid today, staring up at her with his big eyes and asking for a hug. He was still careful not to hold her too tightly, and Ingrid didn't look shaken when he ambled off with his teddy to find Adam.

"Better?" "Maybe." Vlad made their breakfast, leaving Adam's and Wolfies out for them to find and smiled when Ingrid completely flattened him at chess for a couple of hours. "Vlad! Vlad! Adam won't wake up!" Wolfie dashed into the room, whining in his throat as he did when he was anxious. "Stay with Wolfie, I won't be long." Vlad jumped up to Adam's room, and was immediately a little relieved to hear his heartbeat, hear him breathing. There was saliva on his cheek, where Wolfie had apparently tried to lick him awake. This reminded him of his dreamworld trip, when Robin had to slap him awake when pinching, shouting and shaking hadn't worked. Mentally apologising to his vrother, Vlad slapped him. Adam jerked awake, looking around in confusion. "Did you hit me?" He rubbed his cheek, grimacing at the sticky mess there. "Wolfie licked you to try and wake you, you've been unrousable for the last two hours. Sorry I had to slap you out of it, I was worried."

Adam nodded, climbing out of his coffin and heading to his bathroom. "If Wolfie hasn't eaten it, breakfast should be in the kitchen." "Thanks, I'll be down soon." Vlad wondered if the boy would drop again, then figured he would notice Adam didn't come down again and returned to Ingrid and Wolfie. "He ok?" "Seems to be having my sleep issues, only a couple of weeks to go. Final hurdles really. Wolfie, please don't eat the chess pieces." The knight fell from his mouth, rattling as it rolled on the floor. "Sorry Vlad." "Its ok, just don't do it again." "I promise!" Wolfie scrambled off, apparently worried he would get in more trouble if he stayed. He heard Adam greet Wolfie, and relaxed now Adam was awake and up and about. "You thinking dreamworld?" "Not sure, I haven't been to the dreamworld since I had those dreams about the chosen one. Have you ever been?" He could have staked himself for bringing up Ingrid's dreams, but the words were out now.

"No. I kind of assumed it just meant there was something wrong with me." "You should have asked, I wonder if the dream world was where whoever 'chose' me was looking. And once it found me, the dreamworld didn't need to weed out frauds anymore. I meant to look into it, but I haven't had the time." Ingrid raised an eyebrow at him, then her face shifted to pensive. "That's actually not a bad theory. Two does not make a fact though." "Well I know dad has normal, human dreams and nightmares, that one about mum staking him, more than one about Miss McCauley. I had... You know, teenage boy dreams. Even after my dance with the blood mirror." If vampires could blush, Vlad would be crimson as Ingrid stared at him, amusement clear in her face. "Gross." "Your fault." Vlad tried to be less casual about the apparent relationship he and Ingrid were edging into, but the filter between his brain and mouth was firmly on the side of his brain wanting to know if Ingrid was just using him to test her recovery or not, meaning things he knew he shouldn't say escaped.

"Oh really?" "Yes, and I am never bringing it up.. No, never mentioning it again!" Ingrid's smirk had only grown wider at the double entendre of his words, and Vlad felt more than a little embarrassed. He was mercifully saved by Adam and Wolfie appearing, and kept his mind on talking to Adam about his dreams. "Kind of weird, loads of my school friends were trying to slay me. Then it would shift to normal stuff you know, stuff that makes no sense except in Harry Potter or something." "Harry who?" Adam looked scandalized by Wolfie, looking to Vlad and Ingrid for help. "I'm with him, who's Harry Potter?" "I cannot believe my ears! You need to get a TV, and a boxset of the dvds. How have you never heard of Harry Potter!" Chuckling at the animated half-ling, Vlad clicked his fingers at his brother. "Adam, the dreams?" "Right, right. Yeah, then they would go back to slayers and stuff. I don't know why I wouldn't wake up." "Best guess is not everyone gets the same symptoms of impending vampirism. Just be prepared to get slapped awake, and if anything hurts you or says weird things to you, make sure you tell us. Not long to go now."

"Great, like my teeth don't hurt enough." A nearby glass shattered as Adam scowled, and Ingrid only jumped a little. "Sorry, I think my short temper is coming in loud and clear. I'm going to go chew on some ice, maybe some poor dead animal in the fridge too." "Me too!" Wolfie adored Adam, possibly because they were both illegal half breeds before Vlad happened and there was a degree of uncertainty to their futures. As soon as they were alone again, Vlad cautiously approached Ingrid. "You alright?" "It's easing a little, I'm still jumpy but I don't feel as sick and scared and trapped every minute of every night now." She let him hug her, and he wasn't sure who he was trying to comfort but it seemed to work, Ingrid didn't even tense in his arms this time. "I can't possibly understand how tough this is for you, but you're amazing, you'll get there." Ingrid nodded, only tensing a little when his hands slid down her back as they separated.

There were only a few bad wake ups by the time they had to leave for Council, heading there early so Ingrid could settle back in before the others appeared, Vlad and Roque protecting her. "Are you two going to be ok?" Adam's temper flared randomly, Vlad didn't actually think he would hurt the little boy but he wanted to check Wolfie would feel safe. "Yeah, if it gets bad Wolfie knows to gas me and hide." Wolfie held up his garlic gas cannister, then hugged Ingrid and wished them luck. "We'll be fine, promise." "I will keep watch Master Vlad." "Thank you Zoltan." They had to leave now if they wanted to be early, and Ingrid really wanted to be early. "Got my reports, got my charming fiance" Ingrid slapped the back of his head "see, charming. Lets go." Worrying about everyone was exhausting, but surrounded by this little slice of family Vlad knew it was worth it. It felt strange to be heading to a meeting, but Ingrid took his hand as they walked in and it felt right.

"Miss Dracula. Your Grandness. Glad to see you both back here." "Thank you Hack. I'll see you soon I'm sure." Given that Hack was coming to the meeting, that was a given. Roque was waiting for them, holding out Vlad's staff and a dust urn. "Is this him?" "I thought you would prefer to dispose of him yourself." "Thanks Roque. Would you mind filling a gap, at least until I can arrange nominations for a new member?" Roque saw where Vlad was indicating he should sit, and called Father Tollund in to act in his stead as room security so he could take the spot. Placing the urn in front of him, Vlad stayed standing as he waited. There was a murmur between the four other men as they entered the room, and Vlad let Ingrid keep a tight grip on his hand as they walked behind her. "I must say, Morgan looks surprisingly like Roqueloire." Jacob had a somewhat malicious smirk on his face as he looked at Roque stood next to Ingrid.

Once the other members were in, Vlad held up the urn. "You'll all know I cancelled the remainder of the networking weekend, and the last two meetings. Morgan made the mistake of attacking my fiance, and he paid the price. Roque is acting as a temp until you each nominate a new member, and they had better be good ones. I gave some leeway while I got a hold on procedure, but I am not a pushover and now you know I will not stand for anything less than top standards and loyalty." The four others looked at Ingrid, until Vlad hissed to get their attention. "As for the other matter - my brother at the Hunt Ball. He's a dimidius, found after the law changes as proved by the dated report in front of you from the slayers guild. I know the new laws only protect a one time mistake, and that includes my own father, unless you all decide to pass the lie detector on having sex with humans? No. Good. Lets begin."

Vaskow was not happy to have been moved down a spot to fill Morgan's chair, and Vlad made a mental note to ask Ingrid whether she would prefer Hack or Jacob be moved next to her when they appointed a new permanent member. Three weeks since their last meeting, there wasn't actually a lot to go through - the cease fire was working, blood supply good, the dimdius to-find list was slowly shrinking down and Morgan was dust - that was still good news. "How are the two new Lecushka teens settling in?" "Well, considering how much of a shock it was and how traumatic it must be to be untransformed. The slayers are even happy the transformation has calmed them down, I think it's overall a big boost to the treaty." Vaskow audibly grumbled in complaint, so Vlad decided to make an example of him. Holding his hand out, Vaskow was pinned up in the corner of the ceiling, grunting in pain. "What was that you had to say? This is all about collaborating after all."

"Nothing your Grandness." The vampire choked out, so Vlad snapped his fingers to drop him to the ground heavily. "Good. If there's nothing else, I would like to get my fiance back to recuperating. Adjourned." Vlad pulled Ingrid into his hold as the others left, handing his staff off to Roque and thanking him again. "Anytime sir." "Roque, you've gone above and beyond. When it's just us, it's Vlad. "Of course si... Vlad." Roque left, taking Tollund with him and Ingrid finally relaxed. "You did amazingly, I'm so proud of you. Home?" "Yeah, I don't like being here still." Ingrid's honesty with her feelings had come along miles, though Vlad didn't dare hope that would be permanent as Ingrid slowly beat her demons. Lacing their fingers together, Vlad led Ingrid along to the outside. Flying back home, he was relieved to find the castle still standing, and Adam quietly playing board games with Wolfie. "How was it?" "Vlad got all fear me I'm the chosen one on them, couple of them nearly spilled their drinks but only one was stupid enough to make a comment, and soon learned the error of his ways."

Pulling the dust urn from his backpack and handing it to Ingrid, Vlad shrugged. "It probably helped that we started with Morgan's dust. Burn it, toss it in a garlic pit, whatever you want Ingrid." She stood looking at it for a moment, then hurled it into the fireplace where it shattered and flared as the dust burned. "Bastard." "Never repeat that word Wolfie." Vlad heard Adam forbid Wolfie from swearing, but his eyes were on Ingrid who was staring into the sparks of burning dust. Approaching her slowly, Vlad reached for her hand. "He's gone, he can't ever hurt you again." She didn't push him away, but she didn't say anything either, just sat heavily on the sofa and swallowed down blood. When the bottle was empty it went smashing into the fireplace too, and Vlad barely blinked before Ingrid had let go of his hand and flitted away. "Stay here guys." Adam nodded and grabbed Wolfie, and it was a testament to his trust in Adam right now that Vlad didn't worry about leaving them as he chased after Ingrid.

She was in their room, and she wasn't asleep this time as she tried to flame him. Drawing in a deep breath, Vlad closed the door behind him. "Talk to me." "Go away!" Normally, Vlad would give her space but this was different. "Not until you talk to me. I'll follow you to the ends of the earth, may as well save us the trip and talk." He didn't get too close, Ingrid looked angry, and terrified. "Ingrid, please?" She started shaking, but Vlad made himself keep his distance, let her come to him. "I'm so sick of feeling this way. I want to be me again. I want to be mad at you for not noticing I was gone, not desperate to be near you to feel safe." Guilt shot through Vlad, knowing he thought the same - if only he had been faster. "I know. I'm sorry. I will never forgive myself for not seeing you were gone in time." "Is that why you do this? Put up with me hurting you in my sleep, the nightmares, the need, the fact I can barely let you touch me?" Shaking his head, Vlad felt tears rise at the idea he protected Ingrid out of guilt. "No! Do you really think that little of me? Yes, I feel guilty, but that isn't why I want to be with you."

Ingrid didn't look convinced, anger clear on her face still and body still shaking. "Come on, you know I wanted you before this happened. You didn't know what I wanted more than anything was for you to stop looking at me like what we did was wrong, to wake up and not find you gone. I have that now, but I would give it up in a breathers heartbeat if it meant you didn't have to go through what you did." Her anger was lessening, but Ingrid still looked terrified. Swiping the tears that spilled over his cheeks, Vlad sat down in their coffin. "Why?" "Why what? Why do I want you? Why would I give up what I wanted if it would take that fear out of your eyes? There's a lot of questions here." "Both." Vlad didn't see the point in lying, not when he wanted her to believe him. "Because I love you. And I don't mean I love you because your my sister, I mean the whole my heart tries to beat again when you smile at me, I will spend the rest of eternity getting fireballs in my sleep to stay next to you, would lay down my life in a second to protect you way." She looked at him in disbelief, making him feel tiny and vulnerable as she towered over his seated position.

"I... What?" "You heard me the first time. When I suggested this bloody engagement I just wanted us both to have the freedom to make our own choice, and for us to be close like we were saving each others necks from Elisabetta. Then you kissed me that first time to annoy dad, and it threw me. I tried to tell myself I just needed to get laid, I was just hard up from it being a while since Erin, but by our crypt warming party I was losing my mind. And then you... And we. And then you looked at me like I had done something awful, and I hated myself. And then you came back. And again and again. I just told myself I had to let you make the rules, and I told myself it was just physical. Amazing, perfect, but only physical. Then you got hurt, and you needed me and nothing else mattered. It was Adam who made me see it, he saw it first when I was watching you sleep. It was like seeing the world anew, and now all I want is for you to be happy, to make you feel safe and protected. I love you."

"Whoa, backtrack. Adam saw it?" "Yeah. I denied it, obviously but he basically gave me his blessing, said I was good for you and it 'doesn't freak him out nearly as much as when he first heard it'. We never even told Wolfie it wasn't for real, he's never so much as brought it up." Ingrid slowly moved to sit next to him, and Vlad kept himself still so she wouldn't get spooked. "I don't know that I can be what you want." "Let me be the judge of that? I'm not saying we should get married tomorrow. We still have four and a half years almost, I'm just asking you to give me a chance." Ingrid met his eyes, and she didn't look horrified nor was she bolting. "Come on, it's not like I'm proposing. I did that already." That won him a slap to the back of his head, but Ingrid tentatively nodded. "Ok. A chance." "That's all I'm asking. May I be permitted to hold miladys hand? See, I can even talk like I'm courting you old style." "Thirty seconds and I'm already regretting it." The words were in jest, but the sparkle in her eyes was pure Ingrid.

"You wound me." Vlad clutched his chest and fell back dramatically, getting the desired effect when Ingrid chuckled even as she rolled her eyes. "Idiot." "Yeah, well now I'm your idiot." Ingrid yanked him back to a seated position by the collar of his shirt, and Vlad could have melted there and then when she kissed him. "Oh good garlic, you're going to be even gooier than ever aren't you?" "I shall attempt not to be since I know it makes you want to stake me a little bit. No promises though. Are you alright to go back down now? Only I think Wolfie might try to gnaw his way out of Adam's restraining hold if he doesn't know you're alright soon." She thought about it for a moment before nodding, letting him hold her hand and it had a whole new meaning for Vlad now. "I'm still not... I'm not magically better now, you know that right?" "I don't care if it takes six months or six hundred years - though I hope you don't suffer because of him for that long - for you to be 'better', I will settle for the hand holding and sleeping." "See, gooey already. Shut up and lead the way."

Vlad didn't have to say anything for Adam to notice the new dynamic, and Wolfie was just happy Ingrid was alright. "We were about to give up waiting for you two, late lunch it is." Adam's temper was almost directly linked to his appetite lately - if he was hungry, he was grumpy. "Here, have a bat biscuit while you wait." His brother got no chance to argue as Vlad shoved the bat shaped biscuit in his mouth, and that naturally meant Wolfie wanted one too. "Here, now either help or go sit with Ingrid. Quietly." Wolfie pined a little, then sat chewing on the bat biscuit while Vlad made food. Ingrid let him hold her as they reclined in the living room for the rest of the night, and when Wolfie shyly asked Ingrid to put him to bed for a change, she went with a smile. "Are you going to lie and say its not how I think it is again?"

Figuring Adam deserved the truth, since he lived here and had led Vlad to it, he answered honestly. "When you asked before, it wasn't like that. But we talked, and Ingrid said she's willing to give me a chance. Are you going to be ok with that?" "Had you asked me that when I first came here, I would have turned and ran. Now, I see it. I don't know, maybe sometimes there's an error and people who should be together get mixed up with siblings. I just... I never want the details. And never tell my mother." Chuckling and clapping his brother on the back, Vlad nodded. "I can do that. But there isn't much to tell. I'm a glorified pillow when she sleeps, and sometimes she holds my hand. That's basically all there is to it, I'm no magic cure for what happened. I hope torching Morgan's ashes helped though. Come on, coffin time." They headed up and parted ways at their bedroom doors, and Vlad felt stupidly giddy about the idea Ingrid was his contractual betrothed, his sister... His girlfriend? He wasn't sure that was the word, but it would have to do for now.

"Will you stop smiling like a vacant zombie? You'll give vampires a bad name." "Bite me, I will smile if I'm happy. And you're here. So I'm happy." The excitement began to make way for something else, and Vlad had to excuse himself to the bathroom for a 'shower' - dealing with his body so he wouldn't traumatize Ingrid. "I have never seen you move so fast, what was that about?" Vlad shrugged as he opted for another t-shirt that no longer really fit him, just in case Ingrid got fiery in her sleep. "No, really. Are you sick?" "No! I was... I had to take care of something." Ingrid stared at the bathroom door in confusion, then her eyes widened as realisation dawned. "Oh." sitting in the coffin next to her, Vlad felt a little over-scrutinized as her eyes were drawn downwards. "It's not going to bite you, I just didn't think either of us would sleep all that comfortably if I didn't deal with it." He could see the hesitation in her, and leaned over to kiss her gently. "I meant what I said before, I can wait as long as it takes. Don't apologise for not being ready, I understand. Now lay down, it's been a long night and unlike you, I need my beauty sleep." "Ok, I'm definitely staking you for the cheesy lines." "Harsh, I was only pointing out you don't need the help, I do." Ingrid finally settled against him, and he wasn't sure if he imagined her nuzzling into his chest a little more than usual. "Oh I don't know, you're alright looking. I guess. Maybe. Nah, you're right, go to sleep you need all the help you can get." Every insult made him smile - a reminder Ingrid would get through this, that she was still in there and coming back.

-YD-

 **my biggest flaw - I can never remember to stop writing day by day all the time. I will get moving on, I have things to be excited for!**


	22. Family

**And today ladies, gentlemen and variations thereupon, we have Adam and his date with the mirror!**

-YD-

Ingrid still got bad days, still woke up with tears or the shakes, and two more of Vlad's t-shirts were ruined but he got to hold her, wipe away the tears and kiss her when she smiled. Once Adam was transformed, Vlad would be starting on putting a law in place to protect Wolfie from the crimes of his parents. The soon to be vampire was on the phone to his mother and sister now, setting up the post-mirror meet - Jonno, Mina and Eric Van Helsing would be present when Adam went home so everyone was satisfied of safety. "So, first time seeing the slayers since you played reanimation with the corpse?" Vlad looked up at Ingrid, who was smirking over her glass of blood while they were in the kitchen, Wolfie on all fours licking a bowl of water. He liked spending time as a dog sometimes, possibly because Ingrid was secretly soft for the furry creature. "Yeah. Let's just hope his reflexes are as bad as ever."

Ingrid drained her glass, then beckoned Vlad closer and kissed him. Placing gentle hands on her waist, Vlad couldn't help but smile. "I still feel like I'm going to wake up and you'll be telling me to go away." "That is still a very likely scenario. I just might let you come back occasionally." Chuckling a little, Vlad kissed her again. "I can deal with that." Wolfie nudged at their legs, pining for attention and pawing at Vlad's hand. "I'm not sure if he's more our brother, pet or child sometimes." Letting go of Ingrid was not an appealing thought, but neither was Wolfie scratching at his leg. "Hey furball, yes we know you're here." Wolfie licked Vlad's face and then ran off, Ingrid smirking as Vlad cleaned his face. "Shut up, he knows I hate that which is why he ran off."

Swallowing the last of his soya blood, Vlad cleaned up the kitchen and slid his fingers through hers, pulling her back to the living room. Adam was antsy, twitchy and the sleeve of his jacket was frayed where he had kept chewing on it. "If you want we can sedate you until the morning, then it'll be time for the mirror." "Maybe later, kind of don't want to lose my last minutes of humanity. I know I can switch back at eighteen, but I don't know what'll happen before that." That was a smart outlook on his choice, so Vlad didn't correct it. Ingrid could lean against him behind her so long as she could see his hands now, the ring of the son sat neatly on his thumb - Vlad couldn't wear a betrothal ring unless his partner was male so he only wore it around the castle, to help relax Ingrid. It was tiny, but it was progress and even if the ring no longer worked, it was an open show of Vlad handing Ingrid control.

"When are we going back?" "I said two days after, I don't know how in control I'll be. Figured two days was as much as both of us could deal with, plus the slayers will be there to protect them right?" Vlad confirmed that, and there was a bizarre amusement to the fact they had spent months faking the relationship, and now they were about to be around the only people they had to hide a real one from. Wolfie was excited about the trip - they could hardly leave a five year old alone in Transylvania - and was currently whispering to his teddy about it. "My mum is used to a full house, but that's when it's George's birthday. That girl has always been much more social than I ever was, and yet she would probably be the geek of the two of us." "Well, I would be surprised if George invited vampires and slayers, plus the half wolf. Is she inviting any of your friends?" "I'm not sure, they know it's my birthday, and that I left to spend time with family. Maybe? Is that a problem?".

"No no, it's just so we know to stop Wolfie turning into a dog, not to talk about vampire stuff." Adam nodded, bouncing his leg anxiously and chewing harder on his sleeve. "You know what, screw it. Drug me, I'm tempted to start biting the furniture." "Head to your room, the sedative stuff kicks in fast." Adam stumbled off, leaving a dent in the door frame where he bumped into it. "Reminds me of you breaking that door handle in Stokely." "Yeah, go drug him before he chews his way out of a coffin." Vlad kissed Ingrid's cheek, then regretfully dislodged her from his lap and went to acquire the sedative. Adam dropped in seconds after he swallowed it, barely getting into his coffin before he was out cold. "Sweet dreams brother dearest." It wasn't much longer before Wolfie was put to bed too - it was early but Adam would be in front of the mirror before midday and the boy needed sleep.

"Big day for the half breed." "Yeah. Still, I think he is surprisingly prepared given the short time he's known about it." Unbuttoning his shirt to change for bed, Vlad was surprised when Ingrid's hands smoothed over his chest, pushing the fabric down his arms and making his skin tingle beneath her fingers. She traced over the lines of his muscles, hovering near his waistband for a moment before she stopped. "I can't... I can't do it." Placing a finger under her chin, Vlad raised her eyes to his. "I will never make you do something you don't want to do." Leaning down to kiss her gently, Vlad picked up his sleep clothes and headed to the bathroom - his brain knew better but his body had other ideas. The physical thing wasn't really what he missed, he missed the connection, the brief moments where all of Ingrid's guard was completely down. But she was scared, and vulnerable and he knew it would take time.

Dry, dressed and fangs cleaned, Vlad traded in the bathroom with Ingrid and stretched out in the coffin to wait for her. She pushed his shirt off again before laying on him, and since the fabric offered no real defense against Ingrid's nightmares he didn't see any sense in arguing if she was comfortable with his bare skin. Stroking her hair gently as she got comfy, Vlad considered it another baby step of progress as she fell asleep. Ingrid only woke once, and it wasn't for long nor was it particularly violent, and she kissed him before she fell asleep again. Wolfie was at their door, pining in a way that made Vlad wonder if he was on two legs or four before he opened it. The answer was two, and the little brother bounced on his feet, the most unaffected by daylight of them all. "Adam's awake! Come on! And get dressed!" Wolfie ran off, leaving Vlad chuckling at the exuberant little boy.

"Oh, if he didn't make a cute fluffy dog I would dust him." Helping Ingrid out of their coffin, Vlad waited to see if she looked uncomfortable about his shirtless torso. "Don't get dressed on my account." Ingrid's smirk made his chest constrict with want, but aside from anything else Adam needed to get to the mirror. "Well Wolfie said I have to, not that I want to disrupt your viewing pleasure." "I wouldn't go that far." The hands on his chest as she kissed him belied the statement, but Vlad let her have her little victory as he pulled on a clean shirt and trousers. "You get the blood, I'll get the brothers?" Ingrid nodded, letting him kiss her again before they separated. Sighing happily to himself, Vlad tracked down the two of their brothers in Adams room. Adam looked pale, wound tight. "Don't worry, you're going to do great. Happy birthday by the way." "Thanks." Vlad tossed Adam his birthday gift - one of them at least.

Adam pulled the paper open, a Dracula broach with his name engraved on the outer ring. "Official Dracula now bro." "Thanks, its awesome." Adam put it to one side to wear later, standing to follow Adam and a bouncy Wolfie down to the crypt. "We'll have food and stuff waiting when you're done, we won't be far away. Good luck." Adam swallowed thickly, staring at the door to the mirror room but eventually convinced himself through them and the door slammed behind him. Ingrid didn't even jump at the sound, and Vlad couldn't keep a proud smile off his face. "How long will it take?" "He's tough. Could take all day." Wolfie huffed, sitting on the floor and muttering to his teddy in between chewing on a pigs ear - they were disgusting, but it stopped Wolfie chewing the furniture and Adam's slippers.

"It didn't take me long. Or Boris." "You took control, Boris did not. And you put up a fight first, Boris lasted less than half an hour and went crazy." That was apparently what she wanted to hear, the kiss she gave him enough to leave him feeling a little dazed and Wolfie making "bleurgh" sounds from the floor. That was the most intense reaction the boy had ever made to their relationship, it seemed he really didn't care either way - he just didn't want to see them kissing. "Suck it up if you're living here." Wolfie yipped at Ingrid, but didnt complain when she resumed kissing Vlad, leaving him fighting to stay focused on the surroundings and her smirk would have made his heart stop if it could. Given that she was sat in his lap, Ingrid knew exactly what she was doing to him. It was uncomfortable with Wolfie in the room to say the least, but Ingrid didn't look negatively affected by it so he gave her the reign to drive him a little crazy for now.

Brushing a kiss behind her ear, Vlad whispered words of love to her until she smiled - and stopped withholding the bottle of soya blood he wanted. A few hours in, Wolfie had fallen asleep using the teddy as a pillow, curled up sucking his thumb and occasionally making bark-like noises under his breath. "Looks like he's going to be an all day-er." "The doors would open if something happened? Right?" Smirking at Ingrid, Vlad couldn't resist. "Why Ingrid, you almost sound worried." That won him a painful pinch to his forearm, but she still answered him. "He's the least annoying of you two clones. I might miss him a little bit." "Always nice to feel wanted." Her only response to that was a raised eyebrow, but then she kissed him again and Vlad was suddenly far more inclined to forgive her.

The doors eventually flew open again, night falling and Adam had been gone about seven hours now. Wolfie was up in a flash, running in to the blood mirror room. "He's ok!" The halfling came out, dragging Adam by the hand and it was clear there was only one heartbeat left in the castle now. "Is it done?" "Did you buddy up to your reflection?" "Eventually, he kept telling me I would kill my mum and George, so I was a little wary. Then I realised, the only person who can control that is me and not him. So, that's it until I'm eighteen?" Shifting Ingrid off his lap was a painful loss, but Adam looked like he could do with some reassurance. "Yep. You did it. And if you're really worried, the guild can give them stasis spray to help you be around them. You're right though, your reflection picks on your biggest fears and you have to beat them - you did it." Ingrid made a joke about Adam's fangs being bigger than Vlads, which Vlad answered by dropping his own. "I have no reflection but now we look more alike than ever!"

They gave Adam blood and food - human while he was more thirsty than anything, though Adam had said he wanted to try and go veggie as soon as possible. "Are you feeling ok?" "A little overwhelmed, and it's weird not needing to breathe. But mostly ok? I'm not twitchy and I don't feel the need to chew everything in sight, so I'll call that a plus." "Sooooo we can do birthday presents now then?" Adam looked up in confusion, blood smudged on his upper lip. "You already gave me a birthday gift." "I know, but that was so you cheered up a little. Come on!" Adam still looked confused as he followed Vlad to the living room, the gifts took a little work to find in Transylvania but Vlad figured he had done well. "TV, DVD player and Harry Potter boxset. Awesome!" The last gift was a box, which Adam opened and pulled out the cape. "Official Dracula emblem and everything. So there's a gift for the human and vampire in you." Adam hugged Vlad tight and smiled. "Its great, thank you!" It took Adam about ten seconds to decide to put on the first movie, making Ingrid sigh in a long suffering way and telling Adam her gift to him was not staking him for making her watch it.

Vlad didn't care what was on, Ingrid lazing against his chest where he could run a hand through her hair and feel content in her presence. She dozed through the film, which actually wasn't that bad and Wolfie loved it almost as much as Adam. They got through the second one before everyone was feeling the long day, the shorter amount of sleep and they agreed as one to hit their coffins early. Ingrid seemed to enjoy the second one more, the giant snake that could kill with a look amusing to her. "You'll love the next one then." was Adam's answer as he headed to his room, a bottle of blood clutched in his pretty steady hand. "Did you tell him he could die?" "No, he was scared enough and I didn't doubt for a second he would come out of there perfectly undead." Unbuttoning his shirt and hanging it over his chair, Vlad held up his sleep shirt and Ingrid shook her head. Leaving it aside, he pulled his sleep shorts on and waited for Ingrid to join him sat in the coffin.

Vlad closed his eyes while Ingrid changed, relaxing and keeping his mind off her bare skin. His eyes flew open when he felt Ingrid straddling his lap, a t-shirt of his the only thing he could see covering her body. Vlad was about to ask what she was doing when she kissed him, tongue teasing at his lips and her hands sliding down his chest, his stomach and he could feel her smirk when she found him responsive. Groaning when she broke the kiss, Vlad fought not to buck his hips into her. "Ingrid... What?" She wasn't shaking or tense, smirking and nipping at his lip. "Today was a good reminder that nobody can stop me doing what I want. And I want this." Vlad tried to slow her down, take their time but Ingrid seemed to be almost as desperate as him to reconnect, pushing his hands beneath her stolen t-shirt until he stripped it off her. "Are you sure about this?" Vlad's body was demanding hers, but Vlad would rather die than rush her. Her response was to reach down between them and push him inside her, a moments hesitation that almost had him backing out but then Ingrid was completely in this with him.

He gave her the control, keeping their eyes locked until hers fluttered closed against the onslaught and Vlad had never seen anything as perfect as Ingrid coming apart in his arms, clinging to his body as he followed her. He held her as she came down, whispers of love falling from his mouth uncontrollably as she brushed their lips together. "Alright?" Ingrid carefully climbed out of his lap, pushing him to lay down and curling up against his chest. "Better than alright." Vlad didn't expect a miraculous recovery, but Ingrid didn't wake him at all that day and he woke feeling optimistic as she smiled up at him. "Still alright?" "Little sore, but I actually feel pretty good." Vlad couldn't help but kiss her, smiling at her as he saw the bright eyes he had missed, unencumbered by nightmares and tension. "I love you." "Quite right to." Vlad didn't expect it returned, Ingrid was giving him more than he had ever dreamed possible only a month ago and it was more than enough.

Ingrid pulled him into the shower with her, seemingly over her nerves and dislike for touching as she let him wash her. "Are you ever going to stop smiling?" "Maybe in a couple of years, but not for long." She rolled her eyes, walking out ahead of him to dress for the night. Vlad scrambled into clothes himself, catching sight of the condom box on his shelf. "Ingrid?" "Hmm?" Vlad held up the box, and the expression on her face surprised him. It wasn't surprise, or the "oops we forgot" thing, or panic. It was guilt. "I... I knew we didn't need it." The amount of time he had spent looking at her naked in the last hour alone, Vlad would have known if the condoms had failed the last time they had been together - she would be showing. Which left... Morgan. "Why didn't you tell me?" "Because I didn't... I didn't want you to reject me." The look on her face broke his heart, another dull ache when she continued "and I don't know that I can do this." Vlad hurried to wrap his arm around her shoulder, pressing a kiss into her hair.

"What he did wasn't your fault. I would never reject you. And if you don't think you can do this, I will support that choice. If you think you can't do it alone, you aren't." Ingrid looked up at him, uncertainty clear in her silver blue eyes. "You're going to hang around for me to have another guys kid?" "It's not his. It's yours. And if you want it to be, it's ours. Nobody outside this castle is ever going to know the biology, and surely by now you know I don't judge on genetics. I love you, and if you want to go through with it, I will love the baby too." Ingrid teared up a little, pushing her face into his chest and he held her, let her work it out herself. "Are you sure?" Lifting her head up so she could see his face, the truth in his eyes, Vlad nodded. "Completely. I've always wanted kids, I want to be a father. And there is nobody I would rather do that with than you." Ingrid clung tighter to him for a moment, then kissed him. "Ok then, looks like we get to tell those two they are going to be uncles." Vlad couldn't help grinning, Ingrid was agreeing they could be a family and it felt like things were starting to fall into place slowly but surely.

"And Adam gets to push more wizards down our throats. Still, he said you'll like the next one." Ingrid shook her head, but he caught the smirk as they linked hands and headed down to the kitchen. "I think we should wait until we come back from Adam's family - we can't assume Wolfie won't say something in front of the humans." Ingrid nodded in agreement as they waited for the other two, and Adam looked much better when he made his way down. "Wow, vampires are fast! I almost shouted wheeeee as I went." He drank down his goblet of blood, and didn't even seem to notice as Wolfie ate his bowl of maggots. "So, you're adjusting well then?" "I think it helps that I've spent time watching you guys, seeing that it is possible not to be a crazy killer like dad said all vampires are." It was the first time Adam had so much as brought up the sole meeting with their father. "He said that? Actually, I'm not that surprised, he spent ten years drilling that into my head. You get to decide Adam, both now and in two years time."

They retired to the living room to let Adam show them more Harry Potter movies, and Ingrid loved the 'dementors' sucking souls out, and the 'death eaters' symbol - a skull with a snake coming out of it. Vlad only noticed about half of it, distracted by Ingrid laying against him and how perfect it felt with her. Sometimes he wondered how it had taken so long for him to see it, to realise this beautiful, occasionally a little psychotic murder-y, amazing vampire was who he wanted to be with forever. And now they were having a child together, it was just all coming together. They would tell Adam, and maybe Wolfie when he was older, that the child wasn't biologically Vlad's, but Ingrid was a Dracula - nobody else ever had to know and he was happy with that. He meant it when he said he would give this all up for Ingrid to have not gotten hurt by Morgan, but that would be the only reason in the world he would give this up.

"It's almost dawn, and we are leaving after breakfast. You sure you can fly Adam?" Adam jumped up, closed his eyes for a minute and then there was a bat flapping around the living room. He dropped back to the sofa grinning. "It feels awesome!" Vlad was relieved - he didn't fancy tandem transforming two of them and Ingrid had never tried to do it. Wolfie was so excited for the trip he practically ran to bed himself, shouting "I can't wait!" and they heard him land in his coffin. Waiting a few seconds to check he hadn't upended it in his exuberance, Vlad bid Adam a good days sleep and followed Ingrid into their room. He didn't try anything, not wanting to assume Ingrid was up for it all over again because of the previous morning. Ingrid had no such concern, waiting for Vlad to be down to his boxers before she pulled him to their coffin, kissing him and groping at him like it had been years, not a day since they last did this. This time there was no hesitation, and Ingrid was just as responsive and vocal about their mutual pleasure as before and Vlad couldn't help but feel almost overwhelming love for her.

"Are you going to ask if I'm alright again?" "Always, I worry, bite me." Ingrid gave him another demonstration of just how 'alright' she was, and Vlad couldn't help but smile as she kissed him again before curling up against him. There was minor tension in her frame when Vlad's hand brushed over her back as he wrapped an arm around her, but she settled quickly and closed her eyes. Vlad felt guilty when she woke up, but Ingrid swore it wasn't anywhere near as bad as before and threatened garlic to his most delicate anatomy if he started turning her down because he felt bad, when she had spent so long working to finally feel safe enough to let him near her. Holding his hands up in surrender, Vlad kissed her forehead and whispered for her to go back to sleep. When they woke, Vlad kissed her, then pressed a kiss to her still-flat abdomen before letting her lead him to the shower.

"Behave, we have a trip to the breather home and to buddy up with the slayers." Vlad pouted when Ingrid started dressing, meaning she admonished him. "Not my fault you look so beautiful all the time." It was still like seeing her through new eyes, cataloguing everything about her all over again. Shrugging on his leather jacket, Vlad pulled her close and kissed her carefully - she would stake him if he ruined her makeup. "Have you considered the irony of us hiding that we weren't together, and now we are hiding that we are?" "Yeah, but today isn't about us, it's about Adam celebrating with his family. And in a roundabout way, the cease fire - if we can prove humans and vampires 'getting along' isn't the worst thing ever, I think it will relax the slayers a lot more. Especially when they are all on edge about the pregnant slayer." Ingrid stiffened slightly at the mention of pregnancy, but Vlad kissed her gently and placed a hand over her stomach. "I'm here, I promise."

Ingrid stared pointedly at his mouth when they separated, so Vlad rubbed at his lips until the red smear stopped on his hand. "Really not looking forward to not being able to kiss you all night." Ingrid simply winked at him as they headed down for breakfast, Wolfie dressed and bouncing next to Adam, who looked pretty happy about going to see his family. Answering his phone, Vlad got Jonno checking they were still showing up. "Yeah, just getting Adam fed. You guys got stasis right?" "The mother and sister have a bottle each, no chances taken. If they decide to invite his friends over then we'll have to figure something else out." "As long as it doesn't involve large or small wooden pointy things, we will figure it out. See you soon." They hung up, Vlad made sure Wolfie didn't have maggots or toads milk down his clothes and they headed outside. "Hold on tight Wolfie, Adam focus on following me."

Both brothers cringed and made gagging noises - they both knew not to mention it, and reacted identically which amused him - as Vlad kissed Ingrid before they traded four humanoid shapes for three bats. George was outside the house - Jonno keeping watch - waiting for them when they landed and she leapt on her brother - the Giles could tell them apart too. Vlad could hear that George was wearing stasis, no excitable heartbeat from the pre-teen. "Adam! I missed you!" George remembered to invite them in, and Vlad saw Mr Van Helsing alive and kicking next to his wife. "You weren't kidding, the resemblance is uncanny." After a quick check there were no other humans present yet, Adam and Vlad grinned at each other before revealing - according to Wolfie - matching sets of fangs. They drew them back quickly so nobody was nervous, and Adam seemed relatively at ease around the humans, remarkable when the slayers weren't wearing stasis.

"How is he?" "Overall, he's handling it well. He had three months notice and probably handled it better than me with my whole life knowing. I would still leave a couple of garlic gas pots around if he chooses to stay here, but that's because I'm adhering to the dimidius laws. I don't think he's dangerous." Vlad had been mildly dreading the meeting, but Van Helsing the senior actually offered Vlad a handshake. "I hear I owe you my life in a way." "Call it even, my mindwipe was what caused your death. I'm just glad I got to put it right." "You were protecting your family. I can see you put the survival to good use, I have to say I didn't believe your talk of peace back in Stokely." Grinning cheekily, Vlad replied with "and I can't believe my woodwork teacher almost seduced my father in a dress." Ingrid choked on her drink at the reminder, and Van Helsing gave her a wary look.

"Your sister on board with this peace thing?" "Well technically it's law, but yes. She was integral to the drafting of the new laws on dimidius children. And that was before we discovered we had another brother." The other brother was chatting animatedly to George, who refused to believe the boy was only five. Vlad somehow knew the Halloween themed plastic cups were George's idea, and Van Helsing gave them odd looks when Vlad and Ingrid didn't share a bottle. "I drink soya substitute, veggie vamp. Adam plans to when he gets used to the new hunger thing, but hey, that's his choice." Mina Van Helsing offered Ingrid... A blood bag with a bow on. Of course. "Jonno said you were bored of only having his, a couple of the other boys at the guild instantly offered their own when they heard it was for you." Ingrid held it up like it would attack her, but Vlad gave her a pleading look until she shoved it in his backpack. "Thanks. Just make sure they know it doesn't mean they can touch me." Aside from Adam, Wolfie and himself, Ingrid was still keeping her distance, especially from the two men.

"Can Adam stay here now?" "That's his choice, but remember he needs to be safe from the sun, will naturally tend to a nocturnal sleep pattern and if one of you cuts your finger or something his fangs are going to drop on instinct. That takes years to master, even we still get it at times." George tugged Vlad's arm until he - and by extension Ingrid, Wolfie was safe with Adam - up the stairs to Adam's room. "We got a big box and wrote his name on, so it's like a coffin and it's full of comfy stuff. The slayers said they can supply us with blood, and that funny spray that stops him hearing our pulse and we put special curtains up especially for light and photo sensitive people. Will that do it? Mum got him new clothes for his birthday too so he can leave his others in Transylvania." The girl could talk a mile a minute, and didn't even seem to think twice at being alone with two adult vampires. "This is pretty cool, yeah as long as he is safe from the sun then he can stay here. It's his choice though, I don't know if he feels ready to stay around humans full time and he always has a place with us."

They went back down before the slayers started worrying they had eaten the girl, though Jonno looked like he was claiming victory on a bet with his mother when they came down. Sally Giles was looking in confusion at the dog now pawing at Adam's leg. "He was... That was a little boy." "Thats Wolfie, our mums son with another man. I say man. Werewolf, he's a different kind of half-ling. And yeah, he can turn into a dog. He is also the only one other than us who can tell me and Adam apart." "How do you tell each other apart? I can't for the life of me." Chuckling, Vlad stood facing Adam. "For one, he's shorter. Wolfie said we smell different. Up until two days ago, he had a heartbeat. And we aren't totally identical, there's some of his mother in him and his hair isn't as straight as mine."

Jonno and his parents kept staring, then appeared to give up attempting to see the differences. "And you can tell us apart on the phone?" "True, though it's gotten harder the longer he has been living with you guys." They chatted for a little while longer, then Vlad's watch beeped to say they had to get going. "Can I stay?" "If you want. They've got a pretty good set up, and the slayers can check in and you can always call us. But you will always have a room in Transylvania with us, and I think Wolfie will be heartbroken if you don't visit." The dog pawed at Adam and whined, indicating that was very true. "How do I find you guys? I followed you here remember." Vlad pointed at the Dracula broach on his waistcoat - they weren't dressed the same for once. "I gave it a kind of psychic boost - It's very complicated, not worth worrying about. Wear it when you shift into bat form and it'll be like an internal compass, it'll lead you back to the castle." Adam looked down at the broach, then shifted into bat form and flapped around a little. "Wow! That was cool!" "Yeah, I can feel it kind of leading me. I'll stay here for a day or two, see my friends and see how in control I can be around people. Don't worry Wolfie, I won't forget to visit!"

Wolfie pined up at Adam, rubbing his head on his leg until Vlad distracted him with a squeaky bat. "He's so cute! I want a brother who turns into a dog." "Well, you'll have to settle for one that turns into a bat instead." Wolfie huffed happily when George rubbed his furry head, scratching behind his floppy ears and playfully tugging at the bat in his mouth. "We can't stay, we won't beat the sunrise and I have to finish my new law work before Council." Wolfie refused to come to Vlad until Ingrid called him, making Vlad wish he could argue with the fluffy creature. "I'm sure we'll see you soon, your mum has my number so you can call us, because I need to invite you back into the castle the next time you come over." Vlad hugged his brother goodbye, and Ingrid only tensed a little when Adam hugged her. Lifting Wolfie into his arms (his dog-brother really needed a bath), Vlad and Ingrid left for Transylvania. Dropping a now sleeping Wolfie in his room, Vlad had to shower off the dog smell before Ingrid would come near him again, but it was well worth it when she kissed him and pressed him into their coffin. "You still think he'll go human?" Ingrid nodded, slipping out of her own clothes and Vlad tried to remember what he was saying. "I don't. Game on?" "What are we betting for?" Vlad tried to think of something he and Ingrid wouldn't just agree on anyway. "How about who gets final choice on our bloodbinding rings?" He waited with anticipation curling in his stomach - he was as good as saying he and Ingrid were not going to break up ever, and she hadn't even made it to saying "I love you" back yet.

-YD-

 **I'm aiming to be done by 25 chapters... But there's still a couple of major things to come up so maybe I'll say 30?**


	23. Protective

**Adam's a vampire! I don't know why I'm telling you this, if you read this you know that. It would be like me saying Ingrid's pregnant! You already know it.**

 **I may or may not be sleep deprived and as such, chatting absolute shit. Ignore this.**

-YD-

Ingrid stared at him for an indeterminate amount of time, then looked at the ring she already had on. "Are you serious?" "Yes. If it's what you want, I want us to be a family. You, me, the baby. There is no doubt in my mind. This isn't me asking, but I am serious." Ingrid didn't answer for a moment, but then she smiled and Vlad let himself hope. "Game on then." The conversation was forgotten as they twined together, but as Ingrid lay against his chest after Vlad could have cried with happiness. He was wary when they woke, but Ingrid smiled at him in a way that made his whole body glow with joy. "Are you feeling ok?" "I feel amazing, why?" Ingrid's hand cupped his cheek, her eyes burning into his. "Your eyes are glowing again. They haven't done that since your birthday." "I'm happy, maybe I'm just alight with it." Ingrid leaned in, kissing him deeply and Vlad almost pulled her back into his lap, but then Wolfie was at their door again.

"His timing is impeccable." Ingrid looked almost as put out as he did, but they forced themselves apart. "One minute Wolfie, just getting dressed." "Okay!" Vlad sat and watched Ingrid dress, only finally clothing himself when she threw a shirt at his face. "Can't a vamp enjoy the view?" Vlad grumbled as he pulled his clothes on, then pulled Ingrid closer to kiss her. "Yes, but you were doing more than just looking." Ingrid's hand squeezed at him to accentuate her point, making him groan in frustration when she moved away. "I can't help it! You're irresistible to me and you know it." Ingrid winked, then pulled open their bedroom door to reveal Wolfie. "I got lonely because normally Adam is awake before me and tells me not to come bug you guys but he's not here now!" Ingrid ended up pressing a hand to Wolfies mouth to quiet him, and Vlad tried to will away his hormones so he could walk out of the room without traumatizing his brother.

"It's fine, just as long as you don't start opening the door without permission or something." Wolfie whispered something unintelligible to his teddy, then smiled up at Ingrid. "Well obviously, otherwise I might have to see you kissing again! Bleck!" The boy shook his head, then trotted off down the hallway towards the stairs. "Five more minutes and he would have walked in on more than that." Ingrid was clearly not in the mood to help Vlad calm down, teasing him further with a smirk as she followed their little brother. Well, if he wanted her for eternity, he was going to have to get used to that. After breakfast Wolfie scrambled into his lab coat, Ingrid watching with a fond smile as Vlad did his height and growth measurements, testing his blood against garlic and silver and letting Wolfie see all the numbers. "Am I okay?" "Of course. This is just because you are so unique, I need to know as much about you as possible to make these new laws work."

"Are you doing all this for me?" Vlad wanted to protect any child from paying for their parents crimes, but that wouldn't make Wolfie feel better. "Of course, I'm protecting my little brother. So he can be the best uncle ever." Wolfie didn't click instantly, looking at all the numbers Vlad had written down before turning back to him in surprise. "I'm going to be an uncle?" He turned to look at Ingrid, bouncing over to her before he remembered to be careful. "You having a baby?" Ingrid nodded, actually smiling at the little boy. "Wow! That's so cool. I'll be the bestest uncle ever!" Wolfie tossed his lab coat on the table, then dashed off to tell his teddy all about it. "Well, he's excited." "Are you?" Vlad grinned, nodding. "Absolutely. I get to be a father, and I get to be with you. What's not to love?" Ingrid didn't look totally convinced, so Vlad leaned down and kissed her, nuzzling into her neck and pressing a hand to her stomach.

"I meant what I said, this baby is yours, ours. I don't even care if it's a boy or a girl, so long as it's healthy and happy I'm happy." Ingrid hummed contently as he brushed a kiss over her throat, eyes bright with emotion when he moved back to looking at her. "You make it hard to tell you to go away and stop being so nice, you know that?" Smirking down at her, Vlad leant down and breathed against her ear, enjoying the way she shivered and whimpered with desire "you just make it hard." He knew it wasn't as simple as that just because Ingrid had gotten over her aversion to most physical contact with him that she was "all better", but he loved that they could connect this way again as she slid her arms around his neck and kissed him. "I love you. Now we should get back to Wolfie before he finds me trying to find every part of you that makes you do this" Vlad scratched lightly over the base of her neck, knowing it made her gasp.

"Can't Zoltan watch him?" "As appealing a thought as it is, he's lonely with Adam gone. I'm happy to conduct all the tests I can on you later." Ingrid rolled her eyes at his cheesy innuendo, but followed him when he laced their fingers together and pulled her along to find their little brother. The half-ling sided with Ingrid as she flattened him at chess, but then covered his eyes going "ewww" when she kissed him in consolation. Deciding he should go find a recommendation for other movies like these, since Wolfie enjoyed them so much, Vlad knew he should be doing his report but lazing on the sofa watching Harry Potter with Ingrid dozing in his lap as he stroked her hair was far more appealing. After the fifth movie, they had lunch and left dog-Wolfie napping in front of the fire with Zoltan while Vlad made himself work on the report, which was twice as difficult with Ingrid in the corner of his vision. She wasn't doing anything more than lazily flicking through a book on pregnancy, but all the feelings he had for her, the feelings he could express now filled him constantly and he wanted to tell her all the time.

The knock at the door made him jump, Adam hadn't called so he wasn't expecting him, and both of Vlad and Ingrid's parents could get in themselves. "Go wait with Wolfie? I'm not saying you need protection, I know you can take care of yourself" Ingrid looked questionable still, so Vlad tried to make his face more pleading "but it's not just you I have to worry about now." Ingrid looked down at her stomach, then back up at him. "Fine." Vlad kissed her in thanks, watching her flit back up the stairs to where Wolfie was before he turned to open the door. "Oh, hello Granny." Krone Westenra was stood at his door, as sour faced as ever. "Vladimir." "I think you'll find that's not the correct term of address anymore." Vlad hated pushing his title, but this was the same grandmother who had almost stolen three years of his humanity. Her mouth twisted even tighter, but she did say "Your Grandness" and bow her head just slightly.

"I suppose you had better come in, or there will be a draught." The vampiress stepped through the doorway, looking around in confusion. "Why are you answering your own front door?" "There's no staff here, I like my privacy and solitude from the rest of the vampire world." Vlad indicated for her to follow him up, pointing out where she could get herself a drink. She hissed at the TV in the living room, the elderly vampires even more against the modern technology than young but traditional biters. Ingrid was reclining lazily on the sofa, smirking up at Vlad when he leaned down to kiss her. Wolfie barked at them, no more interested in seeing them together as a dog than he was as a boy. "Yes. I heard you decided to stay close to home, though I tried not to believe such nonsense." Vlad was almost certain Ingrid kissed him again just to annoy their grandmother, but he stopped caring when her mouth met his.

"It's not nonsense, it's fact. Remember who's home you are in, or I'll happily escort you to the VHC and have my wonderful security staff execute you for disrespect. Why are you even here?" "I had to see for myself what has become of the chosen one and what was once my favourite grandchild. I see she's lowered herself considerably since then." "I hardly think being the intended bloodwife of the chosen one is lowering myself." Vlad smiled at Ingrid, nuzzling into her throat and humming happily. "Plus, your only three grandchildren are in this room, and none of us really care if we have your favour or not." She looked around in confusion for the third, discounting the dog on the floor. "What?" Indicating the four legged creature, who yipped at being noticed, Vlad nodded. "I'm sure you're aware mum had a baby with her werewolf lover?" "That's a dog." Wolfie growled, though Vlad didn't know what for - Wolfie liked being a dog.

"It's Wolfie! He turns into a dog sometimes." "The grand high vampire harbouring an illegal cross breed? Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse." "He's my brother, and he won't be illegal for long. I could always let slip to the council you knew mum ran off with a werewolf, as you were until recently a high up official member that would still be a crime punishable by death." Vlad had no intention of doing such a thing, but threats really were the only way to get through to some. "You wouldn't do such a thing to your grandmother!" Smirking as he felt Ingrid press her face into his neck, Vlad shrugged. "Watch me. Mind you, you're practically a walking dust pile at this point, time will do it for me soon enough. Though I'm not a patient vampire." The amusement at faking a relationship to irritate various family members was gone now, but the contentment and perfection of it being true more than made up for it.

He could see the irritation and fury rising in the grandmother, and calmly waited for her to find words again - she couldn't exactly keep attacking him verbally without risking a ritual staking. "Your father is threatening to disinherit you." "Again? He only has two full vampire choices. And we are betrothed, disinheriting one is disinheriting both." "He has that other one. His dead brothers wife had his child, did she not?" Ingrid met his eyes then, the question clear - did they tell the truth? "Malik and his mother tried to ash us all, though his mother is a crystal in the bottom of my blood mirror lake, he's one down. He does have my admittedly irate ex girlfriend to hand last I checked." Vlad hadn't even thought about Erin other than in passing when he thought of dusting Malik again for a while, his mind consumed with Ingrid.

"A crystal?" "Oh yes, his Grandness can zone." "That's impossible!" Vlad sighed, and idly zoned his grandmother, leaving nothing but a red crystal where she had been standing. Ingrid teasingly nipping at the base of his throat was undeniably arousing, but between Wolfie and his grandmother in the room Vlad found the will to stand and move away from the touch of her mouth on his skin. Throwing the crystal against the wall so it would shatter, Vlad smirked darkly down at his grandmother. "Want another go?" She staggered to her feet, straightening her clothes and scowling. "Alright, so it's not impossible." "Did you come here just to confirm I was indeed 'turning down eligible vampiresses everywhere' for Ingrid, or just to annoy me?" Ingrid quirked an eyebrow at him, but he saw the spark in her eyes - she understood.

"I thought I would visit since I missed your birthday." "You mean you sulked for half a year about not being invited to the coronation, then decided to visit? That wasn't my choice, I had no say on the invite list." "You didn't invite her to the crypt warming either?" Glaring at Ingrid - she was in charge of that invite list and she knew it - Vlad vaguely inclined his head. "We didn't invite dad either, he just turned up." Krone didn't seem all that interested in actually answering, continuing to scowl around the room. Wolfie didn't seem to enjoy her company, curled up by Zoltan and his head bowed. Vlad went back to being wrapped around Ingrid, rubbing his thumb over the ring on her finger and openly ignoring his grandmother to focus on his sister. "You can't report me for living a less than true vampiric lifestyle, that's a report for the Grand High Vampire, and I am not sure I'll do anything about it." Ingrid actually chuckled at him for that, making his chest glow at the light in her eyes.

"I can see you're beyond hope, I shall simply wait for it all to come crashing down on you both." The woman made to leave, so Vlad caught her attention again. "Just one thing. Permission revoked." Getting another angry hiss for the statement, Vlad watched as she disappeared and he waited until she could be heard flapping outside. "Well, that was fun. You can come out now Wolfie." Wolfie padded over to Vlad, still whining sadly until they both gave him an affectionate touch, which perked him up quite a bit. "We should check in on dad soon anyway, I don't like that we haven't heard much from him." "I consider that a perk." Vlad understood completely, but he couldn't turn off the instinct to care about his father's fate to some extent. "Anyway, it's almost dinner. Eat, finish that report and then you have a promise to keep." Vlad looked at her in confusion, but the smirk that curled over her mouth had him catching the hint pretty fast. "I do indeed. Come on Wolfie, dinner!" "Woof!" was the extent of his ability to reply as he eagerly followed them to the kitchen, licking the dog bowl clean and taking himself off to bed with a full stomach - his dog form required more sleep than his human one.

Ingrid's dark gaze and fiery kiss left Vlad panting, but she actually shoved him into the library with an evil grin. "You're banned from the coffin until you finish that report, come up when you have a finished copy." He could only groan unhappily, watching her head up with a smirk as she said she was going to shower. Vlad had never finished work so quickly, but he made himself reread it - Ingrid would know it was rushed, and it was probably best to check his spiking hormones hadn't somehow influenced his writing. Satisfied it was complete, he flitted up to their room and found Ingrid stretched out invitingly in nothing but one of his long t-shirts. "Finished?" Vlad held out the completed work, waiting for her signal - he wasn't that far gone to forget that. She handed it back, nodding approvingly and smirking as he scrambled into his sleep shorts. She welcomed him into the coffin with a kiss, though he was careful not to press his weight down on her, supporting himself above her as she teased his mouth.

"It's ok, so long as I can see it's you." Vlad was still hesitant, but Ingrid was insistent and slowly encouraged him to press his body to the length of hers, keeping a wary eye on her but there was almost no tension there as they kissed and touched. The shirt she had on was shed before long, and Vlad made good on his promise to explore her, finding every spot that won a pleasurable reaction from her. As long as she didn't feel trapped, could see it was him touching her, and he stayed away from touching her back and shoulders when she was naked Ingrid no longer struggled with them being intimate. And since Vlad adored watching her face, keeping eye contact as their bodies fit together perfectly, it was an easily workable situation. He was still gentle with her, but Ingrid had no such worry and nipped roughly at his throat. Ingrid actually whined in complaint when Vlad moved off her, laying on his back and offering his neck in submission. "What are you doing?" "I want you to mark me. For real this time, no healing." Intent was important here too, Vlad had to want her claiming him for it to truly take, rather than be a faint scar, but that was not a hardship.

"Why?" "Because I want to prove we are equal. I want you to see it and remember I won't leave you. Because I love you. Please?" Ingrid searched his face for a lie, but there was none to be found as she straddled his body. Her fangs were already there as she leant down out of his line of vision, cool breath whispering over his neck. "I love you too" Vlad thought he was dreaming, but the sharp pain as Ingrid pierced the base of his throat, knowing he had to be able to cover it in his "breather friendly" outfits for trips to the slayers guild, Adam's family and the like, but his Council robes would show it as she bit him hard and marked him eternally. Well, he could probably find a way to fade them if he desperately wanted to, but Vlad was certain he would never want anything but this.

She wiped the smudge of dark blood from her mouth, tracing the mark on his neck. "Did you say what I think you did?" The question escaped from his mouth before he could stop it, but Vlad had to know. Ingrid nodded, and Vlad didn't push for her to speak again - it was enough for her to admit it. Reaching for the mark himself, Vlad leaned up and kissed her. "Thank you." "Did it hurt?" "A little, but it was worth it. Now you know I'm yours." Ingrid stared at the mark a while longer, then met his eyes. "Are you going to bite me?" "If you want me to, absolutely. But not while you're pregnant, it could risk the baby and I swear I will never hurt our child." Their hands joined over her stomach, the baby growing beneath them that Vlad already loved. "Are you going to hold back on me too?" "No. I held it back for someone I love, someone I know I'll want to be with forever. That's you." Ingrid kissed him again, and he gently guided her to lay with him where he could press a kiss to her hair. "Sleep now. Council tonight." There was a mild tremor when his hand touched her shoulder, but Ingrid relaxed almost immediately after and she didn't wake again that day.

Her hand found the mark, already healed over and a prominent twin puncture wound scar, almost the second her eyes opened and the touch tingled through him. "Any regret?" "Not one. You?" "Not many vampires can say the chosen one begs them to bite him." Vlad smiled at her, pulling her along to the shower and surprise sparked in him when Ingrid tentatively asked him to wash her back. "Are you sure?" She nodded, trembling as he gently touched her. "Don't push yourself, you don't have to do this." "I want to. He isn't going to keep having a hold on me." Ingrid only made it half way before she couldn't take anymore, but Vlad held her and reassured her until she stopped shaking and brushed the tears away. "I'm proud of you, never forget that." The mark on his neck served as a constant reminder, showed Ingrid he was hers no matter what and it seemed to bolster her as she pressed her mouth over it. "I love you." Ingrid didn't say it back, but she traced it over his heart with her fingers and somehow it was better, a reminder of her progress from when she could hardly touch him.

"As much as I would love to stay here forever, we need breakfast and to be dressed before Wolfie starts scratching down the door." Ingrid chuckled, letting him kiss her again gently before they dressed. Sighing as he pulled on the council robes, he smiled when he realised he could still feel the mark Ingrid gave him. Pushing the crown in his bag with the work on new laws for Wolfie, he found the half-ling dressed and looking sweet in his 'smart' clothes. "You look good Wolfie, careful you don't get maggots down them." Wolfie ate carefully, smiling at getting to go to council with them. Zoltan would be fine to watch him the rest of the time, an hour or so once a week but Vlad was going all in with protecting his little brother today. The little boy sniffed at Vlad for a moment, then leaned back to look up at his neck. "You're Ingrid's now!" "Well, he's not wrong." Vlad nodded in agreement, letting Wolfie look at the mark closer.

"Lets go or we'll be late!" "Remember to be careful of the moonlight, we don't want you shifting too early." Wolfie nodded seriously, checking himself for remnants of breakfast as they got ready to leave. "Hold on tight kiddo" Vlad held on to Wolfie tightly as he shifted, Ingrid letting them out so Wolfie wouldn't get hit by the moon before they were ready. He flapped in waiting as Ingrid closed their door and joined him in flight, making it only a few minutes early to the council building. "Miss Dracula, Your Grandness." Hack would never stop greeting Ingrid first it seemed, but then she did feed his habit of rare creatures. "And a small one? Have you adopted?" "He's our little brother, you'll understand in the meeting." Ingrid was still shaky around so many, but Roque took his seat the other side of her and pointedly looked away while Vlad kissed her gently and whispered reassurance to her. It probably helped that Roque already knew exactly what had happened, one of only five people who did. Six if they counted Zoltan. Meaning Ingrid didn't have to hide what she was getting over, but Vlad appreciated, and knew she did too, that he still tried to give them a little privacy.

Wolfie sat in the corner chewing on a squeak toy (that Ingrid had torn the squeaker out of) and the other members of the council gave him confused looks as they entered, but after Vaskow made the mistake of stupid remarks, nobody else was that stupid. He hoped. "So, first of all, I want a nomination from each of you for a new member. At least one of the nominees should be female, and if you nominate a woman you can also nominate a second person who's male. The more diversity, the better. I want references, intelligence, ambitious but not reckless. All in by the end of the month." They scribbled that down, then everyone seemed to notice the top sheet - Vlad's new report for the new law. "Werewolf hybrids, really?" Jacob was probably Vlad's favourite on the council - intelligent, a loner with no chance of bribery and didn't poke holes in debates just to be a dick. He clearly didn't like werewolves though.

"I completely agree with the laws towards the parents. My new law is about the children, I cannot abide this sins of the father, sins of the child nonsense. Gentlemen, meet my and Ingrid's youngest brother Wolfie. Half vampire, half werewolf and absolutely not a threat." Wolfie ambled to stand between Vlad and Ingrid, whining when two of the members glared angrily at him and clinging to Vlad's leg. "You took a risk bringing him here, if we don't pass this law he is still illegal, an outcast." "He's a Westenra, not a Dracula. But he's still my little brother and I will dust anyone who tries to hurt him, fair warning." Vlad had explained what they would have to say, and not to take it the wrong way when they said he wasn't a Dracula. "I fail to see the point in these proposals." "Vaskow, you could fail to see the point at the end of a stake without a label." The other members chuckled at Ingrid's comment, including Vlad and Vaskow scowled, then remembered who he was scowling at and schooled his face.

"I'm not asking to overturn a law already in place like the dimidius laws. Merely amending a specific part to give these potential hybrids who have done nothing wrong but be born to a criminal a chance to live their lives in peace. I'm studying him, you can see it all in front of you. If at any point there becomes a danger, we will revisit this but I want my little brother to be safe, not condemned because our mother is a cheating psychopath with a fur fetish." Wolfie "bleurgh"-ed at that, then looked up at Vlad. "How controlled is his lycanthropic tendency?" "Wolfie, stand in front of that window?" Wolfie stood there, looking up at the moon and turning into a dog before their eyes. "He's not even a wolf, he's canine not lycan. I don't know if that will change as he ages, but we will never know if you try to cast him out before I can learn. It isn't even asking for any of you to do more than your current job, this is my project and I am only laying basic groundwork."

Vaskow voted against, but every other vampire voted for the temporary amendment, pending Wolfie's maturity and development. "Vaskow, I will not hesitate to replace you if you continue to act so inpetuously. And if you come near my family you'll go the same way as Morgan." Vlad had every expectation that Vaskow would not last the year un-dusted, but nobody could say he wasn't warned. "Westenra? As in Atilla and Krone Westenra?" "Our grandparents, yes. And yes, they knew. However, I traded not turning her in to be staked ritualistically for her to get out of my life. She's only grown more annoying since the death of her husband." Jacob chuckled at that, inclining his head in agreement. "Ah yes, Krone Westenra. She used to love telling me I shouldn't be on the council because I don't technically belong to a clan anymore." "Well, she has zero influence over me and I value loyalty and intelligence, not surnames."

It was an unusual attitude to have, even by fringe vampire standards - everything was about clans. Marriage, politics, children, money, fueds and even friendships at times. But in this room, all that mattered was having vampires intelligent enough to see the benefits of change, instead of hanging steadfastly to outdated traditions. Though Vlad was aware they were still wary of his and Ingrid's ages - they weren't even a century old combined, everyone else here at least two hundred years older. The debate had taken up most of the meeting, and Vaskow barely waited for Vlad to adjourn them before he was disappearing. The others filed out more sedately, Vlad waiting with his arm securely around Ingrid's waist for the room to be almost empty. "Thanks for the vote of confidence Roque, seems I can count on you to protect all of my family." Wolfie nuzzled Roque's leg, the vampire looking at the dog strangely. "I think he likes you. Here." Vlad handed off his staff, calling Wolfie to heel as they left with another thanks to Roque.

Hefting Wolfie into his arms, Vlad shifted after seeing Ingrid take flight and they headed back home quickly. "Yes, I know. I'll change." Dropping Wolfie in the living room, the meeting seemed to have taken a lot out of him and he fell asleep almost instantly when Vlad put him down on the rug by the fire. Ingrid eyed the sleeping dog, then her gaze was dark, heated on him as he hurried to follow her to their room. Dumping the council robes unceremoniously, Vlad let Ingrid press him into their coffin and nip at his throat. "What brought this on?" Ingrid smirked, nuzzling at his neck and pushing his shirt off. "Its kind of hot watching you get all Grand High Vampire. Vampires love power remember?" It was fairly apparent Ingrid was at least somewhat attracted to him, but she hadn't really vocalised it before and Vlad felt a little self conscious. Pushing the thought aside, Vlad 'helped' Ingrid out of her dress, mapping her bare skin with his mouth. She was beautiful, perfect and responsive as she stripped his trousers off and straddled him.

"I love you" Vlad kissed her cheek and cuddled her close, smiling as she melted into the embrace and hummed in contentment. Post-sex was when Ingrid was most pliant, most tolerant of Vlad's affectionate tendencies. Though she was actually quite affectionate herself, it was just usually a little more teasingly. They regretfully got up and showered quickly, dressing in time to wake Wolfie up for lunch. "You should call Adam, see if he plans on coming back soon. Then you can time this visit to dad with flying back with us?" That would likely be as close to admitting she cared for their father as Ingrid would get unless the man was on his deathbed. "Good idea. I'll text though, even if he's awake I doubt his family are and they probably wouldn't like me waking them. I heard his ring tone, that boy has a loud taste in music." Typing out a quick message to Adam's phone - he had remembered to get the number from him - Vlad put the plate of food down for Wolfie and sat down. Eating around Ingrid sat on his lap was awkward, but worth it when he could place a hand over her stomach. He had thought it would be harder to deal with her getting pregnant from Morgan attacking her, but all he saw was the girl he loved carrying their baby.

-YD-

 **I could probably have written this as a final chapter with their relationship levelling out and all, BUT I won't. There's still (I think it is anyway) exciting stuff to come! And Adam's only sixteen, and Ingrid's only what, 6-7 weeks along? Yeah, there will be more chapters! :)**


	24. Loss

**So, I realised I have actually almost neglected to make a weekly update to Lazarus Rising - I usually update that story arc every few days! BasicallI I have a mild addiction to writing this. Still, updated it now!**

 **Warnings for major character deaths.**

-YD-

Adam had answered saying he wanted to come with them, both to visit their father and to go back to Transylvania - he was coping but wanted a break from the constant temptation and he missed them. Wolfie was excitable about seeing the Count, bright and happy. "Remember you can't talk about the baby in front of the humans Wolfie." "I remember! It's a secret! Can I tell Adam when we get back?" That was up to Ingrid - it was her body. "If it will get you to calm down now, yes. But not before we are in Transylvania." Wolfie eagerly agreed, bouncing in wait while Vlad checked he had blood and garlic gas - just in case Adam lost his temper, Vlad didn't want to hurt his brother but Adam wouldn't want to hurt anyone himself. Kissing Ingrid with a smile, Vlad scooped Wolfie up. "Hold on tight!" Wolfie clung to his neck as though he hadn't been tandem transformed half a dozen times now.

Ingrid let them out, closed the door and flew alongside him. Landing outside the Giles house, Adam was saying goodbye to his mother and sister. "Hey Ingrid, I presume Vlad is keeping Wolfie on two legs and that's why he's got wings?" Ingrid confirmed, so Vlad waited as they hid down the side of the house and flew out themselves. They had to fly a little slower to let Adam keep up with them on the way to Garside Grange, and Vlad had to swallow down guilt for the friend he had lost here. The school had closed, so Vlad wasn't surprised it was silent and empty as his siblings landed in the courtyard, Ingrid opening the door and inviting Adam in while Vlad landed with Wolfie and stretched his arms out - flying gave him stiff shoulders sometimes.

"Something doesn't feel right." Vlad agreed with Ingrid on that. He had checked - the Counts subscription to Vampire Times still came to this address, and that was one thing he never forgot to update. Even if the paper only wound him up. "You're right. Stay close boys." Adam had his UV torch from the slayers guild clipped to his shirt, though it looked more like a pen lid or something else innocuous. Wolfie clung to Vlad's arm as they climbed the stairs warily, each paying attention. "If anyone who's here shouldn't be, make sure not to give away which of us is which." Adam hissed into the dark, and it was a smart plan. Sniffing deeply, Vlad could smell his father had been here recently. Miming towards the staircase to the attic quarters, Ingrid nodded back and Adam stayed at her other side.

"I can't hear a heartbeat other than Wolfie, where's Renfield? Dad would never have bitten him, let alone turned him." "No clue. Guess we'll find out. Wolfie, stay behind me okay?" Wolfie was whimpering quietly, but covered his own mouth and gripped the back of Vlad's jacket as they climbed the creaking staircase. If anyone was here, they knew someone was coming. There were other scents present as they reached the door, and Vlad had an inkling who they were going to find. "Adam, with me. Wolfie, you keep hold of Ingrid ok?" Ingrid looked irritated, but let Wolfies little hand cling to hers. "Whoever is expecting me isn't going to be expecting two of me." Even in the dark, he could see Ingrid roll her eyes as he and Adam stood side by side, pushing the throne room door open.

"Erin. I would say immortality suits you, but you look awful." His half fang ex girlfriend was draped across the throne, and she did look a little rough around the edges. There was dirt on her cheek, her nail polish was chipped and her clothes looked well worn. "And I would say its unpleasant to see you, but I have no idea which is you." Adam was looking behind them, while Vlad kept dispassionate eyes on the blonde girl. "Why are you even here? In case you hadn't heard in between breaking laws and shacking up with Malik, I don't live here." Erin kept looking at the back of Adam's head, as though trying to work out if it was some kind of bluff. "I heard. I also heard who you're engaged to this time." Vlad let a dark smirk curl over his mouth, pulling his collar down. "Oh it's so much more than that. However, you haven't answered my question. Why are you here?"

"Because you bit me when I asked you not to?" Vlad was about to answer, but Adam wheeled around then with a grin. "Actually, that was me. He's the fake. Convincing eh?" Erin didn't look convinced, but there was a degree of uncertainty in her eyes. "Fake? I'm real thank you!" "The fake me. He's my brother. Spitting image!" Vlad had all but forgotten how convincing an actor this brother could be, but he was getting a crash course in reminders now - Adam was doing a flawless impression of an excited Vlad. "Anyway. Sorry my brother is a little tactless, you don't look that bad. Well, unless we stand you next to my gorgeous fiance here, nobody compares to her. What can we do for you?" Erin scowled in Ingrid's general direction, and Vlad had to quash the urge to rip her throat out for daring to look at Ingrid after she had helped try to kill them. He may be a little more overprotective than was sensible, but he didn't care.

"It's not me. It's him." They all turned where she was pointing, a door opening along the wall they looked at and there was a sound of shock and horror as they saw Malik, or rather that Malik had their father in a UV cage. The Count looked ill, and Vlad wondered how long he had been kept like that. "What are you doing to him?" "Where's the fire? Took you long enough to get here, we thought we were going to have to start cutting him up and sending you pieces to get your attention!" Vlad hissed angrily, but then so did Adam. "Should have gone to the slayers guild, you could have gotten my number. And meet the girl having your daughter." Malik actually looked surprised then, and Vlad wondered if Erin knew Malik had been "hanging out" with other girls. "You're lying." "France? Think she's about six months gone, maybe seven. IDed you from the pictures of you and her" Erin was indicated "in the vampire times and Transylvania today. Been an integral part in the peace treaty, a pregnant slayer. She's under protection since I told them you were a total psychopath. Sweet girl."

"You cheated on me with a slayer?" Adam flicked his eyes to Vlad, and he hoped Adam was asking the right thing as he nodded minutely. "You're a slayer! Or were. And you ditched off with my brother, screwed him under my roof! You're hardly in a position to take the moral high ground." That was eerie of him to say, as Erin had said something almost identical to Vlad. Deciding they may be too sure Adam was him now, Vlad chimed in with "Lets not forget threatening to stake me with a stilleto shoe, or the poison lipstick. Morality is a low point here." Now Erin and Malik looked confused again, and that was the point. Eyeing the UV cage, it was the same one Vlad had broken out of after setting it up against the vampire tutors. He knew he could switch it off if he needed to, but that was a last resort to show. "Anyway, we digress. What do you want? How long have you been here, and what will it take for you to go away before I dust you for the sake of a quiet life?"

Vlad planned to dust them either way, but Malik was too close to the Count for it to be safe. "Where is my mother?" "Beyond the blood mirror! In Transylvania! We took it with us garlic breath." Vlad was itching to wrap his arms around Ingrid, protect her and their baby but that probably would be a dead giveaway, and both he and Adam doing it may unsettle Ingrid in a situation where he couldn't guarantee he could hold her together. "Ingrid! I know you had a thing for brothers, didn't think you would go that far down though." Ingrid had been into Malik, that wasn't a secret between them but it was nothing, nothing compared to what they had now. And Malik wasn't their brother. "You aren't our brother. Your mother lied." Malik hissed, and the first spark of 'life' in their father finally showed, his head lifting slowly and eyes widening as he saw them all there.

"You're lying!" "Malik, you were born in 1400. Dad wasn't born until 1408. He literally cannot be your father. I don't know what Elisabetta did or said or drugged you with, but you are not 300, and you aren't a Dracula." Adam added in after that "If you want a little more of a clue, take a look around. Three generations of Dracula blues, and your mother is... Was a blue eyes too. You're not." Malik couldn't look in a mirror, but he could look questioningly at Erin, who Vlad turned just in time to see grimacing in acknowledgement. "Well, if I have no clan to be loyal to, I have nothing to lose doing this!" Vlad barely had time to blink before Malik was reaching through the UV cage with a stake, and the two vampires screamed before they were replaced with twin piles of dust as the UV disintegrated Malik and the Count exploded at the end of the stake. "Dad!"

Some logical part of him remembered Erin was now alone and probably scared batless behind them, but it gave way to anger when she started laughing. He wanted to dust her there and then, but she didn't deserve an easy way out so he zoned her and left the crystal there. Wolfie was first to go towards the dust, and Vlad placed a restraining hand on Adam's arm. "Thats a UV cage, you'll be dust if you try to stick your arm through that." The little boy teared up, kneeling down next to the dust pile unaffected by the lethal light. "Uncle Count... Why?" He was dying to break down and fall apart with grief, but he had three siblings who needed him and Vlad was now head of the Dracula clan, formalities aside so he had to be tough. Gritting his teeth against the impulse to let his reflections tear out and destroy everything around him, Vlad focused on shutting off the UV cage. "First argentalium, now UV. Are you sure you're a vampire?" Ingrid refused to look down at the dust, as though she could ignore it and their father wouldn't be dead.

"We need to get out of here. Malik rarely travels alone. Wolfie, go grab that crystal and be careful not to drop it. I'll be right back, don't move." Vlad needed a minute to straighten his head out enough to get them home, but he also needed to flit up to the attic and find his dads box of dust urns. Gripping the door tightly, he let a few tears leak from his eyes before swiping at them and picking up an ornate, beautiful pot and a lead box for Malik - he wanted to sprinkle the traitorous murdering bastard somewhere heavy on the garlic. The ascension gown was back up here but Vlad didn't want it, he wanted his father back. Returning to his three siblings, Wolfie was clutching the crystal and Adam's leg, pining high pitched sadness with emotions running down his youthful face. "Why is Erin not dust?" "Because she's the only one who can tell us what Malik was planning, why he didn't come straight to me. And because I want to take my time tearing her limb from limb."

Carefully scooping his father into the urn, and shoving Malik into the box, Vlad pulled out the bottles in his bag. Handing the real blood over to Ingrid to share with Adam, Vlad offered Wolfie the soya bottle first. "I don't intend on ever coming back here. So I guess I'm saying this is in memory of dad." Clunking bottles, they drank deeply and tossed the bottles aside. "If you want to raid the blood cellar, now is the time before I send the paperwork on this place to Uncle Ivan." That was aimed at Ingrid and Adam, who shook their heads. Pulling the deed he knew his father had hidden out, Vlad shouldered his bag full of dust and crystal and held an arm out to Wolfie. "Home then." They all nodded, shifting and flying back to Transylvania as fast as possible. Vlad pulled out the urn of their father and placed it on the fireplace, where they could see him every night. That done, he turned mechanically and sat on the sofa. Ingrid was first to crawl into his lap, but Wolfie quickly joined them and Adam sat on his other side.

Adam and Wolfie both cried, but Vlad bit back his own emotion and Ingrid just clutched at him tightly and shook a little. The two young halflings ended up falling asleep crying themselves out, so Vlad indicated to Ingrid to go to their coffin while he put the two little brothers to bed. They were heavier than they looked, but he supposed it was part of the taking care of his family he had to do now. Ingrid was laying in their coffin, wearing one of his t-shirts that was a little long on her and even in the state he was in, he couldn't help but admire the creamy pale skin of her legs on display. Dumping his own clothes in a pile on the floor to be sorted out later and practically crawled into a tight embrace with Ingrid. Her mouth found the claim scar on his throat, then travelled upwards to press against his as she straddled his thighs, intent clear as she tugged at his shorts.

The physical comfort seemed to be something they both needed, bare skin meeting and bodies pressed tight together wherever possible. Afterwards, shaking and spent as they kept hold of each other, Ingrid finally let the barriers fall and cried. It wasn't like when she cried after the nightmares of Morgan, this was raw, grief stricken sobs. Ingrid loved their father, and while she didn't need it she had always wanted to gain his approval, even if it was only in competition with Vlad. There was nothing more Vlad could do than hold her and make soothing sounds, wiping the tracks off her cheeks when she seemed to be slowing towards calming down. "Stupid fool, getting himself dusted." "I know. I miss him too." Ingrid managed to fall asleep eventually, so Vlad let himself get a few hours of shut eye before night would fall and he had to deal with the two brothers - Adam had barely even met his father and now he had seen him dusted.

-YD-

 **Whooooops. Yeah, that was kind of in the plan the whole time I was writing this story. In my note book it literally had scribbles about birthdays, laws, and there was a box in the corner saying "Malik kills Count" because I knew I would forget and it's meant to be linked to something. I think. This is why I have a notebook, because when I come up with my awesome plans I FORGET. So I started writing them down and I have misplaced my notes on what the death was for but its around here somewhere *starts rummaging through coffins* come back later I'll see what I find!**


	25. Open

**Well there was no army of angry peasants outside my castle, maybe I'm safe for now...**

 **I haven't found my notes though whoops**

-YD-

Jonno had asked to be updated about if Malik was dust - he wanted to make sure Amy heard from a friend, not through gossip. So it was with still tense hands he typed out the text while Ingrid was in the shower - "Had a run in. Malik and Erin dust. Lost dad too. May want to check Garside is clear of vamps, consider this permission to interrogate any you find and then ask to dust them. Perks of being friends with the GHV." Pushing the phone in his shirt pocket, Vlad leant against the door waiting for Ingrid. She came out dry and dressed, the way he held his arms out in time for her to lean into his embrace instinctive now. Pressing a kiss against her hair, Vlad traced a hand down her arm to join their hands. "Can I stake your slayer ex girlfriend now?" "Not yet. I'm leaving her in the crystal for a few days, she should be feeling nice and chatty when I let her out."

Ingrid tilted her head up in invitation, so Vlad took the offer and kissed her. It was the first good sign he could remember, Ingrid didn't have to stay with him to avoid being married off again but she was still here. "Come on, Wolfie and Adam will be up any minute now." Ingrid nodded, squeezing his hand tighter, not that he knew if it was meant to comfort him or her, and walking with him down to the living room. His phone buzzed just as Ingrid leant against his chest, making her look at him in confusion until he dug the phone out of his pocket. He had seen the tension of an unfamiliar sensation on her back, but now she knew what it was and he would remember to keep it in his trouser pocket from now on.

"Jonno wanted to know when Malik was dusted. Told him the guild had permission from me to check Garside for vamps and play with any they find. Also told him we lost dad." "Not your brightest idea. He's going to want to know how long we are going to play engagement now it's not necessary." Hmm-ing as he read the message, Vlad shifted to get more comfortable and held Ingrid closer. "We'll figure it out. Besides, he's more focused on his own family now and I can play seeing him less often as taking on head of the clan on top of everything else. Assuming you still... Do you still want this?" His neck tingled beneath her fingers as Ingrid touched the mark she left. "I always did. I just didn't want to want it." "Is that why your favourite hobby was trying to kill me?"

Ingrid looked over at the door, checking their younger brothers weren't there yet. "In a way. It was still fun. I didn't want to want someone like you, brother aside you're the most unvampiric vampire to exist. And then you had to go and want me back, which only made it worse because it only got harder to ignore it." "And now?" Ingrid shifted in his lap, kissing his jaw and smiling as he gasped quietly. "Even I'm not stubborn enough to keep fighting this, you've stuck out the worst times of my life and never let me down. Now stop making me talk about feelings before I throw up." Vlad was happy to surrender conversation as Ingrid kissed him, all but forgetting they were about to have company until he heard Adam shouting "cover your eyes Wolfie!" and dredging up the will to break away from Ingrid's perfect mouth.

"Sorry. We were talking." "Must have been a quiet, personal chat because I didn't hear a word." Adam's eyes were red, and Vlad could feel the sadness in the air, but this was pretty much all the family they had now and at least they were together. Wolfie was still sniffly, and he didn't look like he had slept terribly well but he ambled over to them all the same to whisper "Can I tell him now? He looks like he needs cheering up." Sliding a hand over Ingrid's stomach, they shared a smile and nodded at Wolfie. "Ingrid's having a baby! We get to be uncles!" The boy was a little loud to be standing next to two adult vampires, but Adam's face lit up too and it was worth it. "Really? That's pretty cool."

Wolfie's eyes started swimming again as he looked up at the fireplace. "Uncle Count won't meet them though." The reminder was enough to mute the reactions of his body, so Vlad pulled Wolfie up next to him and hugged his little brother. "I know. But they get you and Adam as uncles, so that's pretty good right?" Wolfie whined, his doglike whimpers and pining made Vlad wish Wolfie hadn't had to see that. "I guess so." Adam managed to convince the blubbering boy to go get cleaned up for breakfast, though they didn't really feel like eating it was important to keep Wolfie going through the motions lest he turn into another Dracula that couldn't deal with their feelings. He lifted Wolfie to sit on the side and 'help', winning bark-like laughs from the little boy as he made a total mess of it all and kept trying to steal the ingredients. Ingrid only ate to stop Wolfie thinking he had messed it up, the big puppy dog eyes almost impossible to ignore.

He apparently had enough of talking and there was soon a dog curled up by the fire napping, occasional huffs the only sound from him. Adam looked to be deciding what to talk about, finally settling on "so, baby?" The question was in his eyes, understanding the technicalities more than Wolfie did. "Yeah, we get to be parents!" Vlad couldn't help smiling, the grief was buzzing under his skin but he was shelving it until he needed it - when he got around to talking to Erin - and focusing on everything else going on. "I might have to change my hair or get a tattoo. Because it'll be unfair to confuse the baby with his dad and the identical uncle." "That's assuming you can ever pry the kid from Vlad to begin with. I can barely get him to stop touching the foetus before it's even out of me." Pouting at Ingrid, Vlad admittedly couldn't help but reach for her stomach again. "You make it sound like I cut you open to check it's there, it's normal for a father to want to feel the baby!"

Ingrid rolled her eyes and shifted to get comfortable, but didn't make him move his hand even while complaining it was too early to feel anything anyway. The next Harry Potter movie had Ingrid falling asleep against him, and Adam peered to check she and Wolfie were out before asking "is it... his?" "Yeah. But I told her that doesn't matter to me, I want her and I want to be a father. You're the only other person who will likely ever know that, Wolfie is too young to understand and Ingrid doesn't want anyone else knowing what happened. As far as everyone, including me, is concerned, I'm the father." Adam nodded seriously, then smiled. "I guess it's good that something positive came out of it?" "We'll see. Ingrid wants the baby, but that doesn't mean it'll be plain sailing with it being kind of a reminder of him." "She's got you and Wolfie being excited enough for ten people, I think she'll be fine." "Nah. She will be amazing."

Adam shook his head, looking exasperated. "You two are sickening. Though not in the way I would expect, you're just... I don't know, well matched and disgustingly sweet with her." "As opposed to being horrified by your brother sleeping with your sister?" Adam covered his ears and cringed, shaking his head. "Nope, no details!" Trying not to chuckle and risk waking Ingrid (he liked being undead), Vlad waited for Adam to recover. "I get it. I just don't want to know about it." "I know, I'm sorry. Dracula thing, we kind of go all blunt to gauge reactions or skip the baby steps. Like Ingrid telling you we were vampires. I'll try to tune it down." "Thank you." They resumed watching the movie, waking Wolfie for lunch and the barking stirred Ingrid, and Vlad was encouraged by her waking gently, not bolting alert and scared. "Lunch time, Wolfie obviously thought you needed to wake up."

"Ugh. He's lucky he's cute." Smiling as he kissed her, Vlad helped Ingrid stand up and enjoyed the family lunch. They filled the evening with more Harry Potter movies - the last two apparently, and Vlad chatted about funny memories of the Count over dinner, Ingrid occasionally interjecting. "So your woodwork teacher was in a dress and a wig, and dad didn't notice?" "He was flustered, mum was there saying he would never actually propose to someone. But then, Jonno went to the cinema in a dress and a wig." Having spent a lot of time around Renfield, Wolfie wasn't the slightest bit concerned to hear about cross dressing. Adam however choked on his drink, spraying blood everywhere. "Nice." "Excuse me. How do you even know that?" "He was following me. Got his wig pulled off when I was biting my boyfriend." "Hold on, you turned Will in the cinema? Why?"

"I told him I was a vampire, he laughed. Then screamed like a girl when I showed him my fangs. I bit him before he could run away." Chuckling now he could see Ingrid wasn't distraught talking about Will, Vlad chewed on his ocelot. "This is the same vampire that challenged Justice Morai to a duel? After freaking out about you having fangs?" "Well. Technically he challenged Boris to a duel, we just didn't know that." "Yeah, that is less impressive." Ingrid rolled her eyes and finished her dinner while the other two absorbed the information. "Ok. Who is Boris, and who is Justice Morai?" "Morai was the personal guard of the Grand High Vampire before me. He was also the one who carried out sentencing, like trying to dust dad. Ingrid brought popcorn. Boris was our cousin, went a little nuts after he transformed. Killed Morai, impersonated him and tried to frame half the clan for killing the GHV. He tried to put the crown on and it turned him to dust." They hadn't gotten to an in depth talk of what happened next, because it wasn't really a good time for anyone. They would tell in time.

"And that's when it turned out you were the chosen one?" "Yeah. But that's enough of that, Wolfie is falling asleep in his bowl so coffin time." Adam took the dismissal for what it was - an 'I don't want to talk about it' - and offered to clear up while Vlad put Wolfie to bed. Dropping the dog into his pile of blankets and pillows, Vlad headed to his and Ingrid's room. She was already in the coffin, seemingly deciding his clothes were now her pyjamas as standard. Changing into his sleep shorts, he noticed she looked pensive. "You ok?" "Do you resent me for what I did back in Stokely?" "If I had, would I have come back to save you?" Ingrid didn't move towards him as he sat next to her. "Anyone else, I would have said no. But you, yeah I would think you saved me regardless." Tentatively reaching for her hand, Ingrid flinched back but he persevered until she let him link their fingers.

"I resent being the chosen one for putting that burden on me. I will never regret saving you. I saw you there, you were ready to die too." When that slayer had raised the stake, Ingrid had closed her eyes and just waited, like she was ready to throw in the towel and it was the push Vlad had needed to save her and their father. "And after watching Will die right in front of you, I'm amazed anyone got out of there alive. Regret won't get us anywhere, it's all part of what brought us here, now. And that is me and you, our brothers, our baby." Her grip on his hand tightened, then loosened again and Vlad held fast, ensuring she couldn't get away. "I've killed people. I bit alot of breathers back then." Vlad knew that, but Ingrid wasn't giving him information, she was asking if he accepted everything she was, and everything she had been. "I've killed people too. And that's in the past. What matters now is the future, our future. So long as you don't go violating the cease-fire, then I don't care what you did back then."

They exchanged a deep, searching look before Ingrid seemed to accept what he was saying and finally let him wrap a gentle arm around her shoulders. "I love you" whispered between them as they kissed, tender touches traded as they stripped each other and the soft gasp Ingrid made as their bodies joined sent chills down his spine. "You're so perfect" Vlad couldn't help but tell her, cupping her cheek gently and kissing her. Ingrid responded just as softly, and Vlad felt like he understood where the term 'making love' had came from as he and Ingrid connected so intimately. "How long?" Hazy with afterglow, Vlad "hmm"-ed in query. "How long what? I wasn't timing us." "Idiot." It was said with affection, Ingrid never more open than post-coital conversation. "How long have you wanted this?" Vlad could pin point it exactly when he realised. "Remember when you woke me for the moving team, and you said I was making strange noises and asked what I was dreaming about? That was the first time I had dreamt about you. Back then I told myself it was just physical, that I didn't see any other girl for three months so it was a one off. Only it wasn't."

Ingrid chuckled at his admission, but mimed for him to continue. "I kept having those dreams, even after I went out and found some mildly intoxicated human to take me home. And you didn't make it easy, kissing me in front of dad and drinking blood with sound effects, like it was the best sex you ever had." "I remember that, you tried to say it was about the blood but you were staring at me, not the glass." Vlad would have flushed if he could, realising he had been caught out. "And lets not forget the crypt warming dance where you touched me up then ran away." That hadn't been that long ago, all things considered but their lives were completely different. "I was testing the waters, seeing if I had guessed right and you wanted me. Then it was a little overwhelming and I needed to put my head on straight. Which didn't really work, as I'm sure you remember." He could still feel the guilt if he thought about it.

"Why did you... say what you said that next night?" Vlad tried to repeat it, but the words stuck in his throat. "Because I felt weak for giving in to you. I told myself I could fight it, but I was wrong and you looked so happy and I lashed out, wanted you to regret it so I could get over it by myself in peace." Tracing gentle touches over her hair as he felt her grow tense, Vlad figured they should get through this all in one go. "I didn't regret it, but I felt guilty for that look in your eyes. Then when we found Adam, you just decided to hide in the coffin and scare the dust out of me. And then you tried to tell me I should stop you, like I ever would." Ingrid traced her mark on him, the physical one at least. "I wanted to be strong enough to resist, but I couldn't." "I'm glad to be your only weakness. Except Wolfie and his puppy dog eyes of course." Ingrid pinched him for that remark, but didn't deny it.

"What did you mean, when you said I could overpower you?" "That was literally minutes after I had my little revelation that I was falling, or had fallen, for you. And you were lying there looking up at me and I knew I would do anything to keep you safe, that I would be whatever you needed me to be. And that was terrifying and perfect, like my whole world had shifted a little and that was all because of you. Besides, I like it when you overpower me." That won him a genuine smile, which melted into a smirk as Ingrid straddled him and his body predictably reacted to her. He shivered pleasurably when Ingrid leant down and whispered in his ear, making his body tingle from that point outwards "you ain't seen nothing yet." Ingrid's returning, and even growing, confidence particularly during sex was one of Vlad's favourite things. Even if it hadn't been about giving Ingrid back the control she had lost to Morgan, Vlad had to control so many things in his life and it was freeing to trust Ingrid so implicitly.

He shared this with her as they cuddled after, unafraid to open up to Ingrid in ways he hadn't even been able to open up with Erin. "Stop being soft, I'm trying to sleep" was her answer, but she gifted him with a smile that made his heart constrict before closing her eyes and nestling tighter against him. It wasn't until Vlad woke that he remembered he hadn't answered Jonno the previous night, nor could he even remember what it had said. Hunting his phone out from his pile of clothes, Vlad pulled up the message. "Sorry for the loss man. We'll clear the place no problem." There was no further message, so Vlad expected that meant the place was either clear or so busy that Jonno hadn't had time to text him. Typing out a quick "everything ok there?" message, Vlad spent the night with his family, playing board games and teaching Wolfie to cook some more. "Just cus we're boys don't mean we can't do this!" Wolfie informed Adam with a smile, probably the first boy in their family to be taught gender equality.

Adam had been raised by humans, and George frequently informed them they had been taught "girls can do anything boys can" by both her father and their mother. From what he understood, Adam had been aware his stepfather was exactly that, but only because he was told as the man had never made Adam feel less than his own. Vlad intended to emulate that with Ingrid's baby. Little Wolfie idolized Ingrid, so he was already open to learning they were equals. Wolfie asked Ingrid to put him to bed again, and Vlad pulled Adam aside. "I know you probably thought about heading back tomorrow, but I need you to stay. I'm busting Erin out tomorrow, I need you to keep Wolfie away because I don't see Ingrid agreeing not to be there." "No problem. I want to know why they did this as much as you. I barely knew my real father and now he's gone." "You're still family, don't forget that." Adam nodded, giving Vlad a brief hug and heading up to his coffin. The few moments he had alone were put to good use, finding the carrier ravens that nested in one of the towers and sending off his orders before heading to the coffin containing the girl he loved.

-YD-

 **I absolutely meant to do the Erin thing this chapter but I kept writing and it didn't happen, so that's next chapter!**


	26. Birthdays

**I lost my daily update run because I had to accept my other stories needed some attention.**

 **Now I'm back!**

-YD-

"Bat breath, where have you gotten to?" Vlad closed the door behind him as Ingrid finally found him. "Charming! My oral hygiene is excellent thank you." Ingrid gave him a look of disbelief but there was mischief sparkling in her eyes. "So what were you doing in there?" "Nothing, I just realised in spite of living here for months there's a load of rooms I've never even looked in." Ingrid gifted him with a kiss that made his mind go hazy, leaving him dazed as she stepped back. "Come on, I really want to watch your ex girlfriend turn to dust." Raising an eyebrow at Ingrid, Vlad smirked. "Given how much you tried to do that when she was my girlfriend, I would say you were jealous." "Don't push it zombie brain." Ducking down to kiss her again, Vlad felt her push him into the wall and fought not to get lost in her. "You have nothing to worry about Ingrid. I choose you, and our baby. Erin is nothing but the cheating bat who helped get dad killed, I just want to know why and then you can do what you like with her. Alright?"

"I wasn't jealous." "Mmm. I believe you." Ingrid shivered when his hands slipped under her shirt, he loved how responsive she was to his touch as he grazed fingers up towards her chest. "Uhhh, fine. A little jealous. Maybe." Vlad grinned at the victory, feeling even more victorious when Ingrid whined at the loss as he stopped touching her. "I don't think Adam will appreciate me asking him to stay to watch Wolfie so I can feel you up in the hallway." "Spoil sport." Chuckling as he mouthed at her neck, Vlad would have loved to have continued this. "We can celebrate later, when she's dust." Ingrid's eyes glittered, making Vlad's stomach do funny things as he tried to deal with how much he wanted this vampiress in his arms. "I'll hold you to it." "You say that like I would suddenly turn you down."

They finally remembered to separate, picking up the crystal containing Erin (who still looked to be screaming in agony from the screeching sound that filled the crystal) and heading down to one of the lowermost crypt rooms. They had a UV cage set up, and Vlad activated it the second Erin was out of the crystal. She hissed angrily, though whether that was because Vlad was there, because she was trapped or because Ingrid was trying (and succeeding) to distract him by sucking at his throat. Painful as it was, Vlad escaped from the contact, kissing Ingrid's scowl away before turning to Erin. "Why didn't you and Malik see the blood mirror was gone and come here? Its not like this place is a secret." Her ears were probably still ringing, but he could tell she heard him. "The sooner you answer me, the less time Ingrid has to come up with ways to irritate and/or torture you. And I can say from experience that my future wife can be very... creative when she wants something."

The blatant admission of his and Ingrid's relationship only furthered Erin's anger, but Vlad continued looking expectant for answers. "He was going to stake the Count anyway, to inherit the clan once he had his mother. Between the mirror being gone and you telling him he's not who he thought he was, he had nothing to lose. We knew you would come back to your father eventually, you really love your family." There was nothing but icy revulsion in her tone, which had once held tender affection as she intoned love. In spite of it only being a little over a year ago he had met her, Vlad felt like that was a lifetime ago. There was no other word for it than sensual, the whisper Ingrid made against his ear. "Really?" Erin looked up, having only heard Vlad's side of the conversation. "I could blame it on hormones, or revenge. Does it matter?"

"Game on?" Ingrid smirked, pushing him into the chair and grappling with his zipper. Erin was all but forgotten as Ingrid guided his hand up her thigh, making him whimper desperately when he found her bare below her skirt. "If I didn't know better, I would say you were planning this." Vlad did know better, and he could see in her face Ingrid had planned this. The position was awkward but more than worth it as he held her hips, guiding her motions on him and reveling in every sound she made. Ingrid coming because of him would never get old, her face and the way she trembled and moaned utter perfection. "Blood Ingrid, I love you." Pliant and relaxed in his arms, Ingrid hummed against his neck as she came down, and the fact she let her guard down so much when there was someone else in the room spoke volumes about her trust in him keeping her safe.

Erin apparently couldn't look away, though her face was horrified fascination. "I'm beginning to wonder just how long this has all been going on. Were you cheating on me with your sister while she was trying to slay you?" Smirking up at Ingrid, Vlad shook his head. "Of course not. Like Ingrid would let me cheat on her." Smoothing a hand over Ingrid's stomach, Vlad glowed with contentment. "Especially when she's pregnant." "That's disgusting. You're related!" Vlad shrugged, fixing his trousers and kissing Ingrid. "Vampire DNA is different, it doesn't matter. Something to do with extra chromosomes, all very boring and complicated. Back to you. Anything else you want to talk about before I let Ingrid have her fun?" Vlad couldn't even find it in himself to be angry, Erin was nothing to him now and he had a family to take care of.

"Who was the lookalike, I don't see you letting someone learn shapeshifting." "He's our brother Adam, half human. He's upstairs watching Wolfie, our other brother. You took away his chance to get to know his father, he's itching to come down here and stake you himself but nobody argues with Ingrid." Erin grimaced. "I do have a question. Malik and his mother killed Ryan, the only family you had. Why would you throw your lot in with him? You helped Bertrand find Elisabetta, you wanted her to pay and then you sided wrong anyway." "I was mad at you." Looking at her in disbelief, Vlad couldn't believe biting her to save her out of love could have twisted her so deeply. "I don't know what I ever saw in you." Erin actually looked hurt, but Vlad felt nothing. Leaning down to kiss Ingrid again, he smiled. "She's all yours."

Ingrid didn't bother getting creative, nodding at Vlad to switch off the UV cage and staking Erin a second later. "Were you lying?" "About Erin? No. I can't remember anything I saw in her." "No. About us being related not making a difference to babies." Mind already whirling with the implications, Vlad smiled. "No. Its true, otherwise the point of the law that lets us get bloodbound would be moot. I checked anyway, just in case I ever convince you to have more children." Ingrid contemplated his face for a moment, then he saw the smirk curve over her mouth. "You might get lucky." Pulling Ingrid into his body and kissing her, Vlad grinned. "I have you, I'm already lucky." Ingrid groaned and shook her head. "You're such a sap." "And you love me anyway." Ingrid hmm-ed noncommittally, but didn't deny it and that was enough, he knew she wasn't big on talking about feelings but her being here, obviously happy with him said it all loud and clear.

"Well? What did she have to say?" "Malik was planning to dust dad regardless, he just wanted his mother first so dad was bait to make us do what he wanted. At some point I'm going to dredge that psychopath from the lake and take great pleasure in dusting her. For now I can take solace in her being tortured by that horrid screech sound the crystal makes." Adam nodded, resuming his game of stakes and ladders with Wolfie. "Ingrid staked Erin, so if you find a random dust pile while you wander the crypts it's just her." The four of them ate a messy dinner of carefully supervised Wolfie cooking, and Ingrid even told him he did well which probably made the little boys year. "Clever little pup!" Adam praised as he scooped Wolfie up to put him to bed, leaving Vlad to clean up and get all but dragged to their coffin by Ingrid.

"Have I told you you're perfect?" "Not for a couple of hours." Ingrid smirked up at him as they became entwined, her hands tracing the muscles in his back and clinging to his shoulders. "Well, I'm slacking. You are perfection." They moved more urgently against each other, thrusting with more purpose and falling apart as one. "Damn right I am." Ingrid gasped out, breathless and blissful as they struggled to get their bodies under control. "You are, and I can't wait to spend eternity with you." Vlad had barely finished speaking before Ingrid was pinning him down again, nuzzling and nipping at his neck. He was beginning to understand this was how she found it easiest to express her feelings, but Vlad didn't doubt that she loved him and this was not a bad way to share emotions.

Adam left for his human family again that night, but promised to visit again soon (with presents) to stop Wolfie blubbering. Wolfie yipped at the door knocking, and Ingrid looked confused for a moment. "It's Wolfies birthday, I got him some gifts." It was Ingrid's birthday very soon too, and he knew she knew that he knew. Still, she didn't bring it up and Wolfie got extremely excited when Vlad presented him with the big box. "Go on then, open it!" Zoltan watched in amusement from his reading corner as Wolfie pulled out a new dog bed so he could nap comfortably in the living room, new clothes as he grew so fast, a fluffy blanket he immediately wrapped around himself and all but purred and he looked a little overwhelmed when he found the stack of children's DVD movies. "Can we watch them?" "Of course, I wouldn't be mean enough to get them if you weren't allowed to watch them."

Wolfie cheered and dug through the pile, choosing one about dogs and sitting in the dog bed with the blanket, eyes wide and happy as he giggled at the films. "You're a natural with him." "So are you, he adores you." Ingrid didn't look too sure, but let Vlad continue nuzzling at her neck and smiling at the family moment they had. "You're going to be amazing. I'm certain of it. I know you already are, but I have every confidence in you that when the baby is here, you are going to be the best mother ever." "Because I have such a good role model?" Vlad conceded that point, but continued. "Yes, because you know how it shouldn't be done. And we aren't going to leave them like mum did us."

They were talking quietly, not disturbing Wolfie and Zoltan (who had been drawn in to watching the movie too). "Even if it's a girl, and I don't want to have more?" "Absolutely. I can always set a Dracula precedent and name a girl the next heir." Ingrid pulled him into a kiss that left Vlad fighting for thought, gripping at his hair tightly to hold him in place and he barely remembered Wolfie was in the room and stripping Ingrid was not appropriate. "They're doing it again Zoltan!" "Yes Master Wolfie, they do that alot." Chuckling against Ingrid's hair where she was curled into his chest, Vlad shrugged unapologetically. "We told you, don't ruin the furniture and get used to this, that's all you have to do to stay here." Wolfie huffed but went back to his movie, whispering to Zoltan unintelligibly as Vlad resumed kissing his fiance.

Ingrid wouldn't say it, but Vlad could tell she felt bad for not doing something for Wolfies birthday. Pulling her to the kitchen just before lunch, Vlad winked. "I got you covered, though I think Wolfie would be thrilled with just a hug and a happy birthday from you." Ingrid wrinkled her nose at the smell, but recognised the tripe - Wolfies favourite after maggots and toads milk for breakfast. "I'll her him, you can give him the pile of gross stuff and let him hug you, it'll make his year." Wolfie knew not to get rough with Ingrid, but she still got a little unsettled from physical contact she didn't initiate. "At least it's only once a year. Go on." Kissing her softly, Vlad whispered "I'm proud of you" against her ear as a reminder before going to fetch their little brother. "Come on, Ingrid is waiting to give you her gift." Wolfie jumped up excitedly, but slowed a little at Vlad's warning look - for a now six year old, he was exceptionally well behaved and understanding that Ingrid had been hurt and didn't like being touched very much.

"Tripe! Thanks Ingrid!" Wolfie lit up like a UV grenade, his smile growing wider when Ingrid held an arm out to let him hug her. "Happy birthday." Sure enough, Wolfie looked impossibly thrilled by the sentiment, eating the (disgusting) birthday meal with gusto. The two adult vampires settled for blood rather than trying to eat with the smell of tripe in the air, smiling fondly at the exuberant half-ling. "Go get cleaned up, then you can watch more movies if you want." Wolfie obediently trotted off to wash his hands and face, leaving Ingrid to press Vlad into a kitchen counter and slip hands under his shirt. "Tease" Vlad panted, feeling her nails in his sides. "That implies I don't plan to follow through later." "Still means I have to hide a hard on from our six year old brother." Ingrid simply smirked, turning to lean against him - an effective but torturous cover - when Wolfie came back in. "Are you two coming back to watch them with me?"

"Of course, just gotta clean up, you go ahead." "Ok!" Wolfie bounded off excitedly, still clutching the new blanket and they could hear him shouting to Zoltan about what to put on next. "I'm glad he's so happy here." "Me too. He's kind of cute sometimes." "And you couldn't bring yourself to eat him when you didn't know he was our brother." Ingrid pinched him for reminding her, but then kissed him before shoving him over to clean up after Wolfie. "I am going to dust you." Ingrid really hated Twilight, but Vlad couldn't resist as it had vampires and werewolves in it, and by the end they were even getting along. "Look Vlad, they are vegetarian vampires like you! But Draculas don't sparkle!" The second part was for Ingrid, who wore a lot of dresses that shimmered like the night sky she would rather be dust than put glitter on her skin. Even most of her eyeshadow and mail varnish was non-glitter.

He knew he was going to pay for putting them in Wolfies DVD collection, but Vlad was still fighting laughter at the scowl on Ingrid's mouth. She still ate cake with them after dinner, and caved to Wolfies plea for her to put him to bed that day. Speeding through his quick shower, Vlad pulled on clean shorts and reclined in their coffin waiting for Ingrid to join him. "I'm still mad at you for twilight." Vlad pouted, trying not to break into giggles as she undressed and lay next to him - she wasn't that mad then. "I wanted Wolfie to see a movie where vampires and werewolves get along, that's all. Most of them involve a whole lot of annihilating each other, and there isn't much breather biting. I do agree, they are garlic-awful movies though." That seemed to appease Ingrid enough to let Vlad touch her, tilting her head for him to kiss her and scratching lightly over his chest and stomach.

Idly tracing a hand over the top of her arm as they came down after, Vlad couldn't believe this was his forever, it was too perfect. "You do realise you're speaking out loud?" "I didn't, but that doesn't stop it being true." Ingrid hummed and settled, falling asleep almost instantly and Vlad let himself follow. He spent the next few days juggling setting up Ingrid's birthday gift discreetly, falling more in love with her every day and at one point, chasing Wolfie around the castle when he made off with the tv remote in his mouth. Ingrid merely laughed and watched, looking painfully attractive as ever with the mischevious smirk playing over her perfect lips. He sent her off ahead to shower before they hit their coffin for the day, so Wolfie could whisper conspirationally in his ear about what they were doing for her birthday. "You got it kiddo, just remember not to wake her up because she will not appreciate that." Wolfie nodded seriously as he climbed into his coffin, cuddling his teddy and blanket. "Sleep well little bro." "You too Vlad."

Wolfie didn't know Adam would be back tonight too, saving at least one surprise for the little boy. Vlad barely got into the coffin before Ingrid was on him eagerly, but he gently encouraged her to slow down, wanting to take his time with her. "It's my birthday!" "I know, I'm celebrating. I can't think of a better thing to celebrate than you being unborn. Best thing to ever happen to the world." Ingrid wasn't showing yet, but her stomach felt a little different and Vlad was ever more excited about the growing baby there. "Be sure to humor Wolfie with some surprise tonight, he's so excited to be here for your birthday." Ingrid made a sleepy sound of agreement that Vlad would never tell her he thought was adorable, practically lying on top of him as she shifted in her sleep to get comfortable.

Leaving Ingrid sleeping wasn't an option (not least because she was asleep on top of him all day), but Vlad escaped after kissing her thoroughly and leaving her to shower. "Trust me, it's not that I don't want to join you, but Wolfie is probably hovering anxiously outside waiting for me." Ingrid pouted until he kissed her again, tracing the mark on his neck for a moment before letting him go. Scrambling into clothes, Vlad crept out and indeed found Wolfie waiting. "Where is she?" "In the shower. Remember the plan?" Wolfie nodded, following Vlad down to the kitchen so he could help make Ingrid's kidney balls and corral the worms she loved into a bowl they couldn't wriggle free from. "You don't like worms do you Vlad?" "No, I don't eat things that are alive. But Ingrid likes them and its her day, so get ready." Wolfie bounced to wait by the door, grinning brightly and wishing Ingrid happy birthday when she got there.

"We made you breakfast!" Vlad just smiled and let Wolfie do all the talking, indicating the tray and looking away while Ingrid ate the still writhing critters. Wolfie knew what Vlad had gotten her, and was probably almost as excited as Vlad to show her. "Have you given him too much sugar again? The last time he was this hyper Miss McCauley had given him chocolate." Chuckling at Wolfie gnawing on a chew toy and simultaneously twitching with excitement, Vlad winked. "He knows what your gift is and wants to be there when you see it. But I promised him breakfast first." Ingrid finished her food and drink fairly quickly after hearing that, letting Vlad take her hand and lead her back upstairs slowly with Wolfie ambling in front. "I knew you were doing something and not telling me." Ingrid spied the room she had caught Vlad coming out of - next to their room naturally. "Ready?" Nodding at Wolfie, the little boy pushed the door open.

"Wow." "Do you like it?" Ingrid looked a little overwhelmed at the nursery Vlad had completed, everything as much to Ingrid's taste as he could find. "Black and red, the ultimate gender neutral combination." Ingrid's hand trailed over the black cot, crimson baby blankets and cushions and a (long, arduous study in just how difficult art was) mural of a castle complete with moon and bats on one wall, the others done in a deep purple that almost looked black unless the candlelight hit it just right. "Look, flame proof baby monitors!" That brought a smile to Ingrid's face, Wolfie showing her the little devices that she couldn't accidentally destroy. There was a little wardrobe full of baby clothes, probably every kind of black clothing Vlad could find in baby sizes. "I know you're only about two months along, but I wanted to make sure you could see just how much I can't wait to be a dad with you." "It's... It's perfect. Thank you."

"Did I miss the great unveiling?" "Adam!" Wolfie dashed to leap onto his not-quite brother, happy puppy noises in his throat. "Not our fault you can't fly that fast." Adam glared at Vlad, then broke into a smile. "Yeah, that sunlight thing really puts a cramp in the leaving time." Adam could see Ingrid was a little emotional and lured Wolfie away to tell him all about his week, letting Ingrid fall into Vlad's arms and look at the room in awe. "I'm impressed, this could have been done by me." "You were the driving inspiration behind it all. Much like everything else in my life." Ingrid kissed him, literally flitting him back to their coffin and using the excuse of it being her birthday to leave Adam watching Wolfie as she stripped him with no time for negotiation. Vlad was only too happy to agree, rocking his hips into hers soft and slow until she urged him to hurry, desperate for the crest of pleasure he could raise her to.

"As much as I would love to spend your entire birthday, or eternity, never leaving this coffin, I know for a fact Wolfie is waiting for you to come back down so he can ask your opinion on what movie to watch next." Ingrid grumbled but let Vlad help her dress, the same minute tension in her frame when his hands brushed her back but it was gone almost instantly. "It's getting better." "I never had any doubt." Ingrid actually smiled then, kissing him softly and reaching for his hand. "Come on then, birthdays are now a family affair I see." Vlad grinned, especially when Ingrid let Adam hug her in greeting. "Happy birthday sis." "Thanks." Wolfie had apparently waited for Ingrid to come back before opening his birthday gifts from Adam, as Ingrid had one too. "George chose the wrapping paper, she thought it was funny." It was bright and garish, even to Vlad's more colour-tolerant eyes. Wolfie had new movies from Adam - Vlad had told him what he was getting the boy - and a jumper with a cartoon baby wolf on.

Ingrid opened her gift with some trepidation, but it turned out to be most agreeable - an unbelievably detailed sculpture of a bat. "Mum had to show me how like, everything worked but apparently my art skills have improved since I died." Wolfie eventually convinced Ingrid to choose a movie (Vlad was certain George had picked 'Mean Girls' out for Wolfie too) and the four of them settled in for the duration. Ingrid was also very happy to find a new crate of Duchess of Cambridge vintage in the kitchen, a bow indicating it was another gift. "So far, so good?" "Best birthday since I was sixteen." Given Ingrid's love of being a vampire, Vlad considered that the highest of compliments.

-YD-

 **Finally got to give this story some love. Mostly gooey family stuff! Apart from the dusting of course.**


	27. Baby

**There are four more chapters including this one - excerpts of their lives as time goes on.**

-YD-

"Vladimir Dracula, if you don't stop anxiously hovering next to me in the next ten seconds I am going to dust you and use the dust to decorate the nursery!" Ingrid was now very very pregnant - around eight and a half months and exceptionally testy.

The last six months had been the best of his life, in only a little over a year he had made huge strides with the Council, the newest VHC member a female vampire Ingrid took an immediate shine to as they both hated the constant push down of females. Neil and Lily Lecushka had both opted to stay vampires (Lilys choice wasn't for a while but she had seen Neil stay and they both wanted to be there for future half-ling siblings), and they had found all but two of the Lecushka children scattered now. The new VHC member was a fairly young (only 150 years old) woman, her husband Malachi Krakos very open vegetarian vampire, and Juliana herself open to it once the flavour improved.

Adam had taken over Vlad's trips to the Slayers Guild - though only the three Van Helsings were actually fully aware of that. Oh, and Amy, who had given birth to a healthy half-ling baby and was the pride of the peace treaty. Vlad convinced both Ingrid and Adam not to tell her the baby wasn't part Dracula, and had already secretly added baby Dawn to the Dracula mirror. The name was fitting, the girl a huge step in the dawn of the uniting of the two worlds. Vlad still ached with loss for his father, but watching Wolfie and Adam taking turns practicing on a doll how to change baby nappies with happy smiles while Ingrid rubbed her pronounced bump, Vlad knew it could be much, much worse.

Wolfie was still growing rapidly, Vlad would be surprised if the boy wasn't a fully matured adult by ten or eleven years old. Sitting next to Ingrid and pressing a hand to the active child who kicked at his touch, Vlad couldn't stop smiling. "I can't help it, the baby is due any day now and I can't wait!" They had both agreed not to find out the gender, because Vlad wanted to show he didn't care either way, and Ingrid didn't want to risk hearing it was a boy and convincing herself the baby would look like Morgan. "You aren't the one who can barely stand up, or the one who has to push it out!" "If I could be, I would be." Offering Ingrid a massage to ease her sore back, she had come on leaps and bounds in her ability to let him touch her there. She still couldn't handle it for long when she was naked, but Vlad could hug her from behind when they were dressed and standing up, and she could tolerate him rubbing her back if she had a t-shirt on so it could be pulled down when she was at her limit.

Settling her between his legs, Vlad kneaded the tense muscles of her back and Adam looked mildly disturbed by the sounds it pulled from Ingrid. "You played rugby right Adam?" His brother nodded, though he obviously didn't know where Vlad was going with that. "Hot shower when your muscles were aching?" That clicked things into place for him, and Adam made a strong effort to ignore Ingrid being able to relax a little. Ingrid melted to lie back against him, meaning he could reach to touch her bump again. "Can you not wait until it's out of me to touch it all the time?" Vlad chuckled but didn't relent. Ingrid frequently demanded he read to the baby, his voice settled them quite easily and it made Vlad feel pure fatherly pride. "No, I can't." Ingrid grumbled but didn't move, apparently comfortable using Vlad as a leaning post.

"I did it!" Wolfie held up the doll, and the nappy was admittedly on right and appeared to be staying on too - he could usually get one or the other, but this was a new success. "Well done Wolfie, you got it!" Easily tiring now, Ingrid napped on his chest with a protective hand curled over her swollen stomach and Vlad couldn't imagine loving her more than in this moment. Wolfie decided that looked fun and curled up in his dog bed, still clutching his blanket and teddy in spite of looking 12 or 13 by now. Adam looked up from his spot on the floor, smiling fondly at his sleeping sister. "Do you think you'll have more kids?" "Ingrid knows I wouldn't say no, but its her choice and this baby is mine just as much as if it had my DNA. Plus we should probably get this one into the world before we start considering more." Adam nodded in agreement, tidying up the floor and lifting Zoltan to go give him a bath. "Such indignities for a hell hound." "Yes, but you smell!"

Chuckling quietly as the two disappeared, Vlad watched as Ingrid's stomach moved now and then when the baby shifted. Ingrid stirred sleepily on him, a soft smile on her face as she moved to kiss him. "Good dream?" "Mmm." There had been times Ingrid grew self conscious about her changing body, but Vlad was every bit as attracted to her as ever. Cupping her bump gently, Vlad kissed her again. "You're so beautiful." "I feel huge." "Means the baby is big and healthy. You're still beautiful." Ingrid hummed against his neck, shifting in his lap and Vlad had to remember Wolfie was in the room. "There is a sleeping six year old five feet away, do you mind?" Ingrid smirked, apparently happy she could still 'get a rise' from Vlad.

"It's recommended by many health professionals" was probably not a typical seduction technique, but Vlad was still definitely feeling her allure to him as she breathed the words into his ear. "Uhhh, not fair." Ingrid didn't let up, teasing him further and Adam had barely re-entered the room before Vlad was flitting himself and Ingrid to their room. "You. Are. Evil." Ingrid was unapologetic, their clothes falling away quickly and she straddled him in their coffin seconds later. She was hypersensitive with hormones, shaking with pleasure wherever he touched and kissed her body and he knew he would miss this. "Vlad, please." was the extent of her words, but Vlad couldn't deny wanting her as they melded together. "Fuck, I love you." Ingrid was flawless, smooth skin, pale curves and the life she was carrying only added to it as she shuddered against him. "I love you too" fell from her in a desperate whimper, pushing Vlad over the edge with a burning intensity.

Shaky and mind foggy with pleasure, Vlad struggled to his feet and helped Ingrid shower, then dress comfortably. "I can feel how giddy you are, stop it." "I have an amazing fiance who is about to have an amazing baby, and I just had amazing sex. Of course I'm giddy!" Ingrid was about to say something, but Vlad ducked down to kiss her thoroughly and took pride in the slightly dazed look in her eyes. She tensed and gripped her stomach, but relaxed a second later. "Either get out or keep still!" "Cramps?" Ingrid nodded, letting Vlad lead her back down to their brothers for lunch. "I won't even ask" was Adam's only acknowledgement to them disappearing, holding out a goblet of blood to Ingrid and helping stop Wolfie from redecorating the kitchen with food, a fairly normal occurrence.

It was the first time in months Ingrid woke him in the day, shaky and teary and clinging to him. "Hey, what's wrong?" "Bad dream. The baby was a boy, and looked just like him. Vlad, what if I can't love the baby?" Shifting to sit up with Ingrid astride his lap, Vlad kissed her temple and stroked her hair. "Ingrid, you already love the baby. I already love the baby. And with a mother as beautiful as you, it would be a daft thing for their genes not to show that. It was just a bad dream, that pathetic bastard is nothing to our family." Ingrid finally started to calm, falling asleep in his lap and Vlad was loathe to move her but he knew her back would hurt if she slept that way. Carefully laying her down, he settled next to her and smoothing a hand over the curve of her stomach. Ingrid rolled closer to him, clinging to him in her sleep and he hated that Morgan was still affecting her. He found himself hoping the baby was a girl, as there was no way Ingrid would have a daughter who wasn't the spitting image of her.

* * *

It was only a few days after that particular bad dream that Ingrid's cramps gave way to contractions, Juliana Krakos' sister it turned out was the vampire equivalent of a doctor (they didn't really have names) and there to deliver the baby Dracula, and Vlad thought he might actually spontaneously burst into dust trying to reign in his emotions as Ingrid tried to break his hand with each push. He wasn't sure if it was over much faster or much slower than he expected, but he still burst into tears at the first sight of his crying daughter. "Well?" "She's perfect." Ingrid looked relieved, exhausted but happy. After she was cleaned up and the calmer baby handed to her while Vlad supported her weight carefully, the visiting vampire asked "have you got a name yet?"

They had bounced ideas around, but nothing had seemed to stick so they had agreed to wait until the baby arrived and see what fit. "Mira." Vlad almost choked on emotion at that, the M-eer-a pronunciation just like the end of Vladimir but the spelling more Romanian. "Perfect name for a perfect girl." Ingrid smiled when Vlad agreed, and agreed when he suggested "Valerica" as a middle name. "It means forever strong, and she will be. Just like her mother." And so Mira Valerica Dracula it was, and Vlad could already see their daughter was a tiny, perfectly formed copy of her mother. "I shall hand this off at the VHC then, congratulations you two." Vlad and Ingrid both signed their names on the birth certificates - one for them, one on file - and seeing Vladimir Dracula under 'father' was his new favourite sight. Aside from Ingrid cooing softly at their daughter. "Thank you, for everything." The woman nodded and took herself off, leaving Vlad and Ingrid with their blanket wrapped bundle.

"Can we come in yet?" Admittedly, the boys had waited almost an hour since the other had left, which was an amazing amount of patience all things considered. "Sure but Ingrid's nursing so you won't be able to look much until the baby is full." Adam peered round the door first, satisfied he couldn't see anything other than a head of dark hair in front of Ingrid's chest before he let Wolfie in. "Remember to be quiet, babies don't like loud noises." "I remember." the brothers held a whispered conversation as they headed over to 'their' sofa, picking up books and pretending to be interested while they waited to meet their niece. Vlad winded the baby while Ingrid readjusted her clothes, thankful for the recommendation of muslin cloths for keeping baby vomit off his clothes. "Are they supposed to do that?" "Yeah, you only worry if they don't gain any weight that week or refuse to feed, otherwise it's normal."

Adam and Wolfie were clearly itching to get a good look, so Vlad sat down again and gestured for them to come closer. Quietly. "She's beautiful. Looks just like you Ingrid." It was true, big blue eyes, a shock of dark hair and Ingrid's pouty lower lip already evident in the tiny pale face. Wolfie was entranced when Mira grabbed his finger, refusing to let go with a surprisingly firm grip. "Mira? As in Vladi-Mira?" Ingrid nodded, brushing a kiss over Vlad's jaw and smiling. "Cute. Suits her." Adam relinquished his turn holding Mira to let Wolfie have a quick turn, but then Ingrid wanted her back and as she had just given birth, nobody could really argue with that.

"Ingrid is tired, lets go get some lunch Wolfie." Adam took the youngest brother away, though Wolfie kept peering back at Mira until they left the room. "You were right. She's ours, and she's perfect. And I do love her." "I never doubted you Ingrid. You did so well, and I am so proud of you. I love you, and I love our daughter." Ten fingers, ten toes, chubby little arms and legs and absolutely no idea of what brought her into this world, Mira wriggled and yawned, fussing quietly against Ingrid's chest where she lay. "I just can't believe she's finally here. Didn't seem in any hurry a few days ago." "She was just feeling safe inside her mother, then realised she had to get moving if she wanted to meet you." Ingrid chuckled, stroking the downy hair and her eyes were practically lit up with happiness. Placing Mira in a nappy, a little bat print romper suit, then in her bassinet, Vlad set her back down where Ingrid could see her but still stretch out comfortably.

* * *

"Come on Mira, Ingrid fed you, I've changed you and read to you, what more do you want?" A few weeks old now, Mira was absolutely Ingrid's daughter - complete with stubborn temper and a tendency to scream when she wanted something. Trying to rock the still wailing child to sleep, Vlad paced around the nursery and made shushing noises that were meant to soothe babies. It was a lie, Mira was not even a little bit soothed. It was an hour past daybreak by now, and his dear little daughter did not want to sleep. "Good garlic Vlad, what are you doing to her?" Ingrid appeared next to him, unable to sleep without him there and probably not helped by Mira crying. "You fed her, I changed her, read her a story and everything. She just won't stop crying."

Ingrid held out her arms to take a turn, holding Mira close to her chest and smiling as she spoke to the still noisy baby. "Yes, I know irritating your daddy is great fun, I do it too. But you need to go to sleep now because its daylight out and vampires do not do mornings." Mira settled in all of a minute with Ingrid, which won him a triumphant grin as Ingrid laid her back in her cot. "Just because she likes you best." "Everyone likes me best. Now come on, I'm exhausted." Ingrid had taken to motherhood like magic, and Mira was an active little baby with a healthy appetite already. Curling back up with Ingrid in their coffin, Vlad pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I love you." Ingrid made a sound of agreement against him, already almost asleep now he was here.

Mira only woke once a day for feeds, but she liked to wake up during the day just to exercise her lungs too and that was Vlad's job - Ingrid was still nursing so she had to take the feeds and they had both learned very quickly the different cries Mira had for hungry, wet or just bored and wanting attention. She was also awake most of the night, and Vlad had no idea where she got the energy from. Adam was visiting again this evening for a few days, his time fairly evenly split between England and here now. Changing Mira, Vlad dressed her and handed her over to a still half-asleep Ingrid for her feed, then took her back to wind her while Ingrid got dressed herself.

"How's my favourite little girl?" Adam was as taken as Wolfie with his niece, though he was the only one aside from her parents that knew Mira's genetics but he and Vlad agreed there was nothing but Ingrid Dracula in the little girl. "Fussy and cheeky, just like last time." Handing Mira over so Adam could greet her properly, Vlad hungrily swallowed down soya blood while he had free hands for a moment. "How's fatherhood?" "Amazing. Worth every sleepless day, death threat from Ingrid when I have to wake her to feed Mira, and even nappy changes aren't that scary anymore. She's worth it all." It was true, Vlad could scarcely stop smiling at Mira all the time and he knew the bond of love he felt was as strong as any other parent. Well, any good parent, he had known some bad ones. Ingrid retrieved Mira from Adams arms as she passed, looking down at their daughter with pure love written across her face. "I'm still amused the Grand High Vampire can take paternity leave." "I didn't really give them a whole lot of choice. If they want to sit in there without me and achieve nothing, then they can but I'm not going in for another week at least unless there's an emergency."

"I got some interesting news while I was at the Guild by the way. Jonno finally asked Amy out!" "About time. Only took him what, four months?" "Yep. You should see him with Dawn, it's hilarious how she's not even a year old but she has him completely at her mercy. And, his mum is pregnant!" "What do you send as congratulations to a pregnant slayer? Garlic flavoured chocolates? Cupcakes with UV bombs in?" "A stake with their name on." Ingrid offered, mischievous smirk curling over her mouth. "Not sure that's congratulatory Ingrid, unless you send them one with a carving kit to put the babies name on." Wolfie was thrilled to see his uncle back, giving him a tight hug and pottering over to look at Mira. "She's still little! When do they get bigger?" "When they want to, she's perfect as she is furball." Wolfie smiled brightly, kissing Ingrid on the cheek and Mira on the forehead.

It was also Wolfies weekly checkup, his height still shooting up and his blood still not responding to silver or garlic. "Will Mira grow super fast like me?" "I doubt it, she isn't part werewolf and we are all fairly sure that's what makes you grow quickly. Still, you're both perfect as you are." Wolfie, as it turned out, was already showing an interest in alchemy - given that he had been friends with Renfield it didn't massively surprise Vlad. "I'm gonna go read, you can go back to staring at your baby." Smiling and hugging his little brother, Vlad wondered where their mother was. It had been so long since they saw her, she could only know their father had been killed by the announcement in the Vampire Times about the Grand High Vampire ascending to head of the Dracula clan. Ivan had sent a letter congratulating Vlad, but his family was really the four other people in the castle, and that suited him fine now.

-YD-

 **The next three chapters will centre around Adam's dimidius choice, Vlad and Ingrid's bloodbinding and Wolfie's finishing puberty (well, that's the plan. You know what they say about best laid plans...)**


	28. Choice

**I should consider writing my other stuff BUT this is almost done and then I can start a new story... Because I am a glutton for writing more than I can reasonably cope with. Obviously.**

-YD-

"Mira! Come here you adorable little terror!" Adam had barely landed on two legs before he was demanding to see his niece, who was now a year and a half old and looked more like Ingrid every day. "Mum isn't thrilled about me being gone for another birthday, especially with another three months where I can't even go home." "Yeah, I can imagine. But it's better for you to be here for the rocky times, you aren't a threat to vampires. And then regardless of your choice, you can live your life how you want." Adam nodded, getting an affectionate ear tugging from Mira, who giggled happily when he scrunched his face up in pain. "Definitely Ingrid's daughter." Mira agreeably transferred to Vlad's arms, somehow innately knowing the difference between her father and her uncle from the start. "Dad! Cake!" "Mira, at this rate you'll have no teeth." "Don't care!" Her speech was excellent for a year old girl, but it was mostly spent on her saying no or demanding things. Still, Vlad loved that she was every bit as spirited as her mother.

"After dinner. Then you can have cake." Ever since her first birthday when the girl had discovered cake, it had become a staple part of her diet but Vlad always ensured she ate actual food first, and she certainly burned off the extra energy keeping both parents and both of her uncles on their toes. And admittedly, she did always clean her little milk teeth well. Mira scowled but knew the rule, complaining loudly to her mother when she was say down in the kitchen. "I know, these boring men eh?" Vlad pouted as he helped their daughter eat her dinner, cleaned her face up and then left her to enjoy her child sized portion of cake in favour of kissing his fiance. Mira predictably made unhappy sounds about it - a habit she had picked up from Wolfie, Adam just looked away, or threw something at them when he thought they were getting carried away (which Vlad couldn't help, Ingrid was irresistible).

"Bath time, then bed little lady." "Not tired!" This was the same argument every morning, but Adam offering to read to her today appeased her enough. Ingrid gifted him with a happy smile as he took Mira for her bath, putting her in her favourite pumpkin patterned pyjamas and then tucking her into her coffin shaped bed. Adam offered her a choice of books, so Vlad left the two of them to story time and returned to the kitchen to wrap his arms around Ingrid. "She is absolutely, one hundred percent a tiny version of you." "Mmm. So she's perfect then." "Of course." Ingrid kissed him, smiling happily and it still gave him butterflies. "You're amazing with her." "You doubted me?" She peered around to check they were definitely alone before shaking her head. "I didn't doubt you. I just worried you would resent that she wasn't yours." "Never. And she is mine. Ours. You know what I mean. I couldn't love her more if she had my genes." Ingrid nestled into his arms, just short enough in comparison to him to tuck her head in the crook of his neck - a perfect fit.

"I know. I hate that I even thought it." "I get it, and I promise to always reassure you rather than get upset. We're getting bound in less than a year, I know what I'm letting myself in for. I've known you all my life." Given their 'bet' on Adam's choice, they hadn't gotten bound yet but had agreed on Vlad's 21st birthday - so they only had to suffer one party full of boring, slightly tipsy vampires instead of two - the 21st was the official celebration of Vlad coming of age as head of the clan in spite of that being two years previous by the time the date would happen. "Three years since we filed the contract, people were starting to talk." "They do that." Adam flitted down to them to say Mira was finally asleep before taking himself off to his coffin. "Mmm, that sounds like a good plan." "I only wanted a drink, not mental scarring." Wolfie grumbled as he came into the kitchen, just in time to find them kissing and Vlad's hands slipping under Ingrid's shirt. "Sorry Wolfie. Kitchen is all yours." He and Ingrid dashed off to their coffin, stripping each other quickly and tumbling into the shared sleepspace.

Vlad couldn't deny this was one of his most awaited aspects of Ingrid's 'recovery', tracing fingers down her back and she shivered in pleasure, a world away from when she trembled in fear. She had been sensitive there before, and both of them had disliked the mental block she had for over a year. Now though, now he could scratch his nails gently over her spine and relish the way she whimpered. There were even a few days where they slept spooning rather than with her draped across his chest, depending on how Ingrid felt and whether Vlad remembered to wear the ring of the son so she could look at his hand and remember who was behind her. Letting her decide, Ingrid rolled onto her side and Vlad slotted in behind her, ring securely on his hand so she could settle as he laid his arm over her waist and brushed kisses over her shoulders. "I love you" "love you too, now shut up and let me sleep."

* * *

A month into Adam's second three month spell with them, his powers were waning more than they were evident, though he could still flit around most of the time, he couldn't make fireballs or transform into a bat or smoke. "I wonder if part of this is to remind you what it feels like to be human, as opposed to just the two sides at war." Adam was clicking his fingers at a candle, which resolutely stayed unlit. "Maybe. Nobody has ever had the chance to study it in depth, given this is the first generation of legal Dimidius cases ever." "True. I didn't realise how used to my powers I had gotten." They hadn't pressured Adam to talk about his 'choice', but he knew both sides worked - Neil Lecushka proved he could stay a vampire, and they had had one of the dimidius teens step into the sunlight, and the slayers had confirmed they were perfectly human again.

Mira was glaring at the candle on his behalf, as though she could set it alight with her perfect Ingrid-replica scowl. "Burn!" Ingrid laughed at their daughters antics, watching as she gave up and went to play with dog-Wolfie. It was like having the best of an uncle and a pet for the girl, though Zoltan was secretly fond of the girl too. When she wasn't threatening to put itching powder in his stuffing again at least (she had learned that particular trick from her mother). Mira had everyone who met her wrapped around her tiny, evil little finger and she knew it, shoving Wolfie aside to curl up next to him for a very rare night time nap. "Well, I know someone who is having a bath in the morning." "Well it's your turn to bathe her. Which means its my turn to bathe her while you stand aside watching her splash water in my face?" Ingrid didn't shy from parenting, but she seemed to have an intuition to when Mira was about to start throwing water around and back off. "I'm glad you know your place." "I do. Here. With you." Ingrid smirked as he leant down to kiss her, predictably getting lost a little until Adam threw a knight at them. "Chess pieces are not weapons!"

"And in the room with the three of us is not the place to start feeling each other up." Ingrid stuck her tongue out petulantly, groping Vlad in a way that made both him and Adam groan, though for very different reasons. "Oh for bats sake, take her away before she wakes the younglings and traumatises them too." Ingrid didn't give Vlad chance to say otherwise as she flitted them upstairs to their coffin, the desire he had been fighting blazing free now they were alone. Ingrid only seemed to become more attractive to him every day, and Vlad wasn't sure he would ever learn to temper the need he had for her. Though he wasn't complaining, it made for a heated, powerful connection between them. Ingrid did complain when Vlad convinced her into a shower before they went back to their daughter, but her eyes lit up as Mira sleepily muttered "mama" before toddling over to her.

* * *

A month until his birthday, minus a heartbeat Adam was almost entirely human for all intents and purposes. He couldn't flit, fly, levitate or flame, his fangs wouldn't descend and he outright refused to drink blood. And he seemed really rather frustrated. "I can't go out in the sun or eat garlic but I can catch a cold and I have to walk everywhere!" "Me too! We can walk together." Mira crawled onto Adam's lap and smiled up at him, cheering her uncle up instantly. "Thanks tiny terror, I'll remember that." Adam had somehow turned Mira into a Harry Potter fan, so that movie went on and Ingrid used the time to paint her nails, the first film still not holding her attention though the further along the series they got, the more attention she tended to pay.

"When can we go back to the PVC?" "V H C Mira. Not PVC." He was going to kill Adam some time for teaching that set of initials to Mira. "Yeah. There." The Council had asked to see the child, as though in spite of setting a date they wanted proof Vlad and Ingrid were actually an item. His favourite reaction was still Mira scrunching her face up and telling Vaskow he smelled funny, though the high pitched sound of joy Hack made when the little girl said hello to him was a close second. "She looks very much like her mother." Vlad had known what Roque was asking, stood apart in the corner but both with eyes firmly on Ingrid holding Mira and talking to Juliana. "Yeah she does. Which is good, I love my daughter dearly but I'm glad Ingrid doesn't have to see anything but our child when she looks at Mira." That was as close as admittance Vlad got, but Roque was intelligent, he could probably have worked out the dates.

"I don't know, Council isn't on for a couple of weeks because we have time off to deal with the Dracula dimidius situation, though obviously if there is some emergency Roque will come and get me." "I like Roque!" It was true, the man's face when Mira literally clambered up onto a chair to be able to tug his sleeve for his attention stuck in Vlad's mind. "He likes you too pumpkin." Mira smiled around her mouthful of cake, thankfully having also inherited Ingrid's natural elegant grace and didn't talk with her mouth full. Ingrid put her to bed, and Vlad could hear her reading to their daughter through the ajar door, smiling to himself as he relaxed waiting for his fiance. "What are you grinning like a fool at?" Opening his eyes to find Ingrid unzipping her dress torturously slowly, he had to fight to remember what she was saying. "Listening to you read to Mira. There is nothing I love more than seeing you with our daughter. My two favourite people in the world." He did concede to Ingrid that the expanse of pale skin she revealed was probably a very close second as she pinned him down and kissed him roughly.

* * *

"Well. It's the big night. For starters, happy birthday bro!" Midnight ticked in on Adam's 18th birthday, six hours until he had to make the big decision. Mira helped him blow out the candles on his cake, sat in Adams lap smiling brightly at the huge amount of cake she had easy access to currently. "At least let Adam get to it first you little monster." They all fell about laughing when Mira smushed icing covered cake in Adam's face, then started in on it herself with a malicious giggle. "Well, she did let Adam have cake first technically." Ingrid smirked at their mischievous child, but even she knew to pull Mira away from the cake before she made herself sick while Adam cleaned himself up.

"Come on mini me, lets get you a clean dress." "Ok mama!" The two girls left, and Adam chuckled as Vlad watched them go. "Look at you, still every bit proud father and husband to be." "I can't help it, I love them both so much it hurts." Sipping at his goblet of soya, Vlad cocked his head. "Have you come up with a valid excuse for your mum, or are you just going to drop the "my brother and sister are getting married" bombshell before running away?" Adam laughed, returning with "Jonno can't be your best man again if he doesn't know you're getting married." Flicking a loose bit of icing at Adam, Vlad nodded. "True, but he has his own life to be getting on with now, so it's not like he's the only person I know now and I don't need the slayers at the binding to prove I'm serious about peace. Three years of cease fire and it only keeps getting stronger."

"Do you think Jonno's new baby sister will be raised a slayer too?" "I hope not, but its not my call. I do find it funny his step daughter is older than his sister." "Jonno and Amy aren't married?" "Yet." Ingrid and Mira reappeared by then, the little one no longer plastered with cake. "Dad!" Mira scrambled into his lap, always happy to see him and it warmed his unbeating heart. "Hey beautiful, did you enjoy the cake?" "Yeah!" Ingrid watched them with genuine affection, family life only getting better every day. "Dad, phone!" Vlad's phone was indeed buzzing in his shirt pocket, Sally Giles the caller ID flashing. "It's your mum, I imagine she wants to say Happy Birthday." He handed the phone to his brother then hurried Mira away - now was not the time to have THAT discussion with the humans. "Why we leave?" "So Adam can talk to his mum sweetheart." Mira wrinkled her nose at the endearing term - she much preferred when Adam called her tiny terror.

"Gifts when he's done?" "Yes! You did very well to wait until gone midnight." Mira had been pestering them for a week about giving Adam the gift from her - not fully understanding how birthdays worked yet but today she had waited until midnight. And then got sidetracked by the huge cake. By the time Adam got off the phone fifteen minutes later, Mira was climbing the walls. Well, she was clambering over Vlad and demanding to know where Adam was, but it was the same thing. "Adam's back! At last!" Vlad's body was abandoned as her climbing frame as she slid down and ran to Adam. "Sit! Gift! Now!" "Can't say she didn't learn from the best how to tell people what to do." Ingrid smirked as Mira tugged Adam to the sofa and waited for him to sit down, then handed him a long, thin rectangular box.

"Open it!" Adam chuckled at the demanding toddler, lifting the red ribbon off the black box. Vlad could see the tears rise in his eyes at the photos, ranging from the first ones taken back when he was only fifteen, to him holding baby Mira and playing chess with Wolfie and a few of Vlad, Ingrid and Mira to match. There were fifteen photos in all, including a sweet one of Wolfie and Mira holding "Happy Birthday Adam" signs in the centre. "We might have borrowed your camera." "For this? I forgive you. This is amazing, thank you." "You like it?"" "I love it Mira, thank you." Vlad handed Adam a small box, explaining "technically, tradition states dad should give you this, but in lieu the head of the clan does it" as Adam found Dracula crest cufflinks. "Why thank you Count Dracula." "I will fireball you." Adam grinned cheekily, carefully pinning the cufflinks into place.

Wolfie was still in his room, sad at the idea Adam might not come back to them and pining. Even Mira hadn't been able to convince him out, nor had Adam swearing he would absolutely see them again. "He'll come around, he just got used to this being his life and this is a big change for him. He grows fast but he's still a little boy really." Adam nodded, still looking a little saddened as he fiddled with the dog collar Wolfie wore sometimes. "Come on, Mira is chomping at the bat to get you watching more wizards with her." The two left the kitchen carrying drinks, Mira very happy to get her strawberry punch (Vlad refused to put leeches in it but it looked like mama's glass of blood so she was happy) in the toddler cup with a lid, plus the bat wing shaped handles. Ingrid took her goblet from Vlad happily, leaning against his side and rolling her eyes as Mira sat rapturously watching the movie with Adam.

Six am seemed to creep up on them without notice, Vlad's watch beeping to warn Adam needed to go out for the sunrise. "Three minutes, as soon as the sun hits the sky properly you can't change your choice. I'm not sure it's fitting, but good luck." Adam nodded, walking out of the front door by himself and three minutes had never gone so slowly. Wolfie reappeared at last, whimpering and pawing at the floor anxiously as they waited. Staring at his watch, Vlad counted to one hundred and eighty, feeling the sunrise outside. "I don't hear anything." "He could be dancing for daylight exposure again for all we know." They all jumped a little as Adam reappeared, grinning. "Unlikely big brother, vampires and sun don't mix!" Adam opened his mouth, showing he still had his fangs as Wolfie's daylight change back hit. "Adam!" The half-ling jumped on his 'uncle' (as he had dubbed Adam) happily. "You stayed!"

"I did. I've spent the last two years learning to balance my life, seemed silly to give that up for a suntan and garlic bread. Especially when I didn't eat it that often and I was always pale anyway." Mira was thrilled her uncle could levitate her again, which naturally was celebrated with more cake. "Come on you little terror, bed!" Mira felt spoiled for choice as Wolfie and Adam went to get her cleaned up and ready for bed, her giggles filling the castle as Vlad cleaned the kitchen and kissed Ingrid. "I do believe that means I won the bet." "I am not wearing something heart shaped. Ever." Chuckling, Vlad kissed her again. "You haven't even asked what I want yet." "Because I expect an answer inappropriate for where we could be overheard." Vlad waited, knowing Ingrid would ask anyway. "What do you want?" Pressing his lips to hers again, just because, Vlad winked. "Whatever you want." Ingrid pinched his arm for his cheek, then rolled her eyes. "What the blood and garlic was the point of this bet then?" "I wanted a way to ask if you were planning to stay. Without asking you to stay." "Idiot." "I'm your idiot though."

-YD-

 **Come on, like I was going to make Adam human!**


	29. Binding

**It's their big day! This story has come on so far, thank you to everyone who has stuck with it!**

 **And this is to the best of my intentions, the penultimate chapter! (unless anyone feels there is something else I should write about here? Now is the time to speak up!)**

-YD-

Adam's mother had not taken his choice to stay a vampire easily, but they were reconciling and George absolutely loved that her brother was 'still really cool'. And if Vlad was invited somewhere, Adam was too - or Vlad flat out wouldn't show and more than one vampire had made that mistake before now. Which meant the still almost totally identical two still confused everyone - even now Adam had stopped wearing the fake crown (mostly) and they didn't always dress to match now. Stifling a yawn in his drink, Vlad hated vampire social gatherings as much as ever. Especially when it meant boring vampires were desperately trying for his attention - there were already two dusting incidents this weekend when the idiots had bragged about violating the cease-fire. To Vlad.

"How exactly are we supposed to do the blood tea ceremony? Our father is dead, and even though neither of us are planning to break it off, there would be no clan to feud with - We are both already Dracula." "It's tradition!" "In case you haven't noticed Vaskow, I don't give a bats flap about tradition. And as I said, it's not applicable to this situation." Vaskow scowled, but shrank back. It had taken a long time for Ingrid to be ready for this Networking Weekend rearrangement, but it was finally happening a month before they bound blood. It probably helped that Ingrid was never alone, Vlad, Roque, Adam or Juliana near her at all times. Not that Juliana knew why Ingrid wasn't left unattended, but she and Ingrid were still firm friends it seemed.

"You look as enthralled as ever." "I'm listening to idiots try to convince me to pass this law or that law on werewolf hunting or slayer slaying, when I could be at home with you and Mira and Adam and Wolfie." Ingrid smirked as he wrapped an arm around her, glaring at one of the visiting American vampires who was making eyes at his soon-to-be blood wife. "Do you think we'll still have creepy stalker types at every event after we get bound?" "I expect so, you'll still be the Grand High Vampire, and I'll still be me." Chuckling as he kissed her, Vlad continued counting the hours until they could get out of this accursed engagement. "If you try to get me to let someone floss my fangs again Jacob, I will dump you in the sun chamber and forget about you." Jacob smiled darkly, eyeing up the waiters and waitresses (Vlad pushed for equal numbers but it was slow progress still) about the place. "Not all of us are about to swear off the market." Waving him off to annoy someone else, Vlad drained his glass and thanked the waitress.

"Only a month to go. Nervous?" Vlad shook his head. "Not at all. You?" "As if." The reminder had Vlad smiling again, remembering it was only a few short weeks until he and Ingrid would be eternally bound. "I sometimes think Mira is only excited because there is going to be cake, and she got a new dress." Ingrid chuckled, nodding in agreement. "Probably. Still, there are worse things that the 'terrible two's could bring." "We still have terrifying threes and fearsome fours to come yet." Ingrid didn't answer, but did indicate the big grandfather clock (two thousand years old) and Vlad almost danced. "Finally!" Blissfully calling a close to the weekend now it was two hours to sunrise, Vlad barely waited for everyone to leave before he tossed his staff at Roque. "Eager to leave Vladimir?" "You know damned well I hate these things. See you next week Roque." Adam laughed as the three Dracula vampires shifted and flew home, Vlad's council robes tossed in the laundry and his crown hung in seconds.

"Mama! Dad! You're home!" Mira leapt at them, Vlad picking her up so she could reach to greet her mother. "Yes! And thankfully that torture only occurs every half a decade." Wolfie greeted them rather more sedately, though still excited to see them his mental development was starting to catch up with his physical, and Vlad expected the boy had only a year or so to go before they found out what happened to his particular breed of hybrid at maturity. He couldn't stand the smell of garlic any longer, and pure silver made his hands itch but that was about all the changes so far - he didn't have fangs, or drink blood and still shifted to dog, not wolf. The main difference Vlad could see between him and a pubescent full werewolf was that he wasn't furry as a human - which Ingrid liked as it meant he didn't shed.

"When can I wear my new dress and eat cake?" "Next month, daddy's birthday." "Too long!" Chuckling as he handed Mira over to her mother, Vlad felt warmed at the sight of them together. "When you're an immortal adult you will realise a month is barely a shake of a wing." "I'm gonna be the best vampire ever!" "I don't doubt it pumpkin. Now come on, let's get you in the bath and then bed." Mira pouted, still a perfect copy of Ingrid's facial expressions but bedtime and mealtime were strict rules - Ingrid understood Mira needed some form of structure in her routine to help her deal with the way her parents were occasionally disappearing. As long as they were always there when she woke, and when she went to sleep Mira wouldn't feel abandoned, and Vlad knew Ingrid was happy Vlad was a hands on father who delighted in their daughter knowing he adored her.

Vlad gave her her bath and tucked her into bed, and stood watching with pure happiness in his heart as Ingrid read to her. Mira fell asleep fairly quickly, settled now her parents were home. Pulling Ingrid to their room, he kissed her gently. "You did amazing this weekend, I couldn't be prouder of you." Ingrid hummed as he held her, drumming her fingers against his chest in the way he knew meant she was thinking. "Do you still want more children?" "I want what you want Ingrid, Mira is more than enough for me if you don't want to have more, you know that." They undressed and lay in the coffin, Ingrid quiet and contemplative. "I think Mira needs a brother or sister. Driving your siblings crazy is the fun part of growing up." Chuckling for a moment, Vlad realised what she was saying. "You serious? You want us to have another kid?"

The smirk Ingrid hit him with could have floored stronger men than Vlad, and he couldn't deny that 'trying' for a baby was almost as amazing as actually being a father. "Eager?" "When am I not when it comes to you?" Ingrid arched against him, desire plain in her eyes and it made him burn with want. "True, you're like an over excited virgin every day." Conversation gave way to unintelligible cries of completion, and Vlad was already imagining watching Ingrid grow with life again, and making sure Mira never felt second best like their dad had made Ingrid feel. "How long have you been thinking about this?" "A few months, but I didn't want to be huge at the bloodbinding." Vlad pulled her close, stroking over the curve of her throat. "Sometimes I wonder if you're putting off this whole biting business." "I hadn't really thought about it, Mira keeps us busy." That much was true, and Vlad wasn't accusing her, more reminding her he couldn't bite her whilst pregnant - the power shift could endanger the baby.

"Do it. Claim me if you dare." Ingrid lay back, tilting her head to expose her neck to him. "It's not a dare, it has to be what you want." Her eyes flashed red, challenging him. "I do want it." In spite of them being about to be bound eternal, Vlad was still in awe at Ingrid asking this, offering herself this way. Stroking a reverent hand over the blank skin, Vlad looked at her. "Are you sure? It could hurt." Ingrid laced her fingers through his hair, pulling his head down to her neck and his fangs dropped in spite of himself. "Do it Vlad, I'm yours." Dropping the guard that held his powers back, opening himself fully to this with her, Vlad bit down and felt it take, the bond of his true first bite forming. There was pain on her face when he pulled back, forcing his fangs back and wiping the smear of blood from his mouth. "I'm sorry for hurting you." Ingrid took a deep breath, opening her eyes and they were blazing, burning bright and blue. "Worth it."

* * *

"There isn't a single thing about this binding that's traditional, I'll be damned if I am going to sleep away from you even for one day." Ingrid made a token protest, but he knew she wouldn't sleep well alone and neither would he. "I will get up, then go shower, dress me and Wolfie and leave separately if it means that much to you but I'm not sleeping without you ever again." Ingrid didn't resist as he wrapped his arm around her, almost too excited to sleep. Eventually managing to drift off, he was wide awake almost the instant his eyes opened, gently prodding Ingrid awake too. "Go away!" "Charming. And there was me thinking we were supposed to be getting bound tonight." That got her attention as she realised he was right. "You. Go shower. We'll never be on time if I come with you." She had a good point, so Vlad traced a finger over the scar on her neck, kissed her and convinced himself to go and shower alone.

"I should be offended you're wearing the same suit you almost married Adze in." "I know, but dad had this made for me, at least this way he's kind of there with us." He only bothered with his trousers and boots - he had to go get Mira ready and that could get tinted lip balm (Ingrid was her mother, she was already obsessed with makeup) all over the pale grey shirt. Ingrid cast him an interested look before heading to the bathroom herself - that was the last he would see of her until she was being walked down the aisle to him. Adam and Wolfie were waiting outside, already dressed themselves. "You look very fancy pants! Ingrid's just gone to shower so I wouldn't go in any time soon." Adam nodded, resuming leaning against the wall in waiting. The two had flipped a coin or something to decide who was doing what - Adam was 'giving Ingrid away' which was an awful term but Adam was thrilled. Wolfie was his best man, Mira the excitable little ring bearer and Roque had agreed to perform the ceremony. They had asked Ivan, as the oldest Dracula still alive but he declined. Vlad wasn't even sure if the man would show up.

Mira was most agreeable this evening for once, as it meant she got to wear her new dress. Carefully brushing her long, thick hair out, Vlad hurried to finish getting dressed and sent Wolfie out to check the coast was clear. "Yep, lets go!" Holding Mira in one arm and grasping Wolfie's shoulder with his other hand, Vlad flitted them down to the ballroom doors - this way they would be seen to host something again at last, and they wouldn't have far to go when it was all over. Wolfie handed the rings to Mira, then the three headed in to meet Roque. "Thanks for doing this for me Roque." "It's an honour Your Gr... Vladimir." He corrected himself at Vlad's warning look - they were the only four in the room bar the band and caterering team again. Though he was informed there was a security team outside too to ensure everyone was actually carrying invitations.

The most amusing thing to Vlad was that Roque's daughter still didn't think Vlad was seriously with Ingrid, though she had seen them with Mira. And Ingrid had insisted on inviting her, apparently still against the girl who had tried to kiss Vlad three years ago. Zoltan wheeled himself in behind Wolfie, a big black bow tied around his neck. "Who dressed up the hell hound?" "Mira picked it for him, I just put it on." Wolfie grinned, fiddling with his tie. He was taller, round face thinning out some and puppy fat starting to melt away. His hair was also growing longer, which Vlad thought may have been inspired by Ingrid. "I'm still laughing at having to hire a pipe organ, and the musician to play it." Granted, it was moved quickly and set up near the band, but Vlad still thought it ridiculous.

"Ready to start letting people in Your Grandness?" Vlad nodded to the security vampire sticking their head around the door, standing in place with Wolfie and keeping hold of Mira until everyone was in place. The whole thing was a sea of black, occasional flashes of colour but most of the attendees were dressed such that they could be off to a funeral next. "Have you considered the funny thing of someone who looks exactly the same as you being the one who brings Ingrid down?" "Yes, but that's why I have to wear this." Vlad scowled to the offending object as he placed his crown on, the official difference between he and Adam in public. "Getting tied down so young, Your Grandness is mad." Vlad recognised Jacob, who he knew was speaking where Vlad could hear him just to wind him up. "Stick a stake in it Jacob, just because nobody wants to bind with you." The vampire chuckled darkly, heading to his seat and blissfully shutting up.

Once everyone was settled in, Vlad caught Talitha actually arriving but Roque was stood right there, he doubted she would make a fool of herself. Unbuttoning his collar so the claim on his skin was obvious, Vlad recognised the swell of the organ filling the room with haunting music, which could only mean one thing. Quickly dropping Mira down so she could stand next to Wolfie, Vlad turned to see Adam lead Ingrid to him. Emotions he could never simplify into words filled him as Ingrid stood next to him, turning to face each other and linking their hands together between them. The actual ceremony was very short, a brief outline of the expectations of their union and such nonsense, the "does anyone have a just cause or impediment" question, which nobody answered, and the part where they actually bound their blood - small slices across their hands that melded the two together. And through it all, Vlad couldn't keep his eyes off Ingrid, or the smile off his face.

Ingrid's choice of rings were very Dracula, blood diamonds with intricate bat shapes engraved in them on a slim black band. Not that Vlad approved of blood diamond mining, but these were ancient, old craftsmanship and not a custom job so he let it go. The bloodbinding only supplemented the bond Vlad had created when he bit her, but they were tied together in every way possible - Ingrid had told him yesterday she was pregnant and Vlad was thrilled. The kiss wasn't a neccessity, but Vlad wasn't about to not kiss his new wife and was vaguely aware of their daughter and brothers giggling nearby - vampires didn't do clapping, it was horrid on the bat hearing. Ingrid's eyes were bright and her smile genuine as he remembered they had an audience and pulled back, and he realised they had actually done it. While the seating area was cleared to let ceremony melt into afterparty, Vlad lifted Mira with one arm, wrapping the other around Ingrid. "I love you" were the only words he could manage through the thick emotion in his throat, but nothing else really needed to be said.

"Went off flawlessly. Congratulations you two." Adams blessing was a gift in itself given that he was horrified the first time he heard of their 'engagement', and Vlad offered him a bright smile. "Thanks." Mira clambered over to Adam so they could go and acquire cake, and Wolfie followed - he could eat for Transylvania most of the time lately. Scooping goblets of blood from a nearby table, Vlad offered one to Ingrid and wrapped an arm around her waist. "Did I say Happy Birthday? You do realise you literally never have the excuse of forgetting the anniversary date now? I'm told men do that." "Ingrid, I am going to celebrate the fact you stood here and bound with me for all eternity, not just once a year." Roque kept a nearby watch as half the room came to congratulate the Grand High Vampire on getting bound, Ingrid firmly at his side the whole time until the crowds cleared off to eat, drink and generally socialise away from the only people Vlad cared for - his family.

"Count Dracula." The voice surprised him, Vlad hadn't noticed Ivan arriving. "Uncle Ivan, I'm still your nephew." The vampire looked exactly the same as the last time Vlad had seen him, though Vlad vaguely recognised his wife chatting to another vampiress nearby so he obviously didn't always travel alone now. "Well, Vlad then. Congratulations, you seem worlds apart from the little boy back in Stokely." "Yeah, crown of power and inheriting the clan while leading the vampire world does that. I do still stick to soya though. Much to my new wife's chagrin." Ingrid nodded in agreement, glaring at his glass. "Yes, I can't say I saw that coming back then." Vlad inclined his head. "Me either, but it was a welcome surprise." Mira returned, attached to Adam's neck by her little arms. "Adam, this is Uncle Ivan. Ivan, these are our brothers Wolfie and Adam, and our little monster Mira." Mira smiled at the 'compliment' and traded over to her father, cake smudged across her face.

Ivan was still staring at Adam, apparently surprised by the resemblance Adam bore to Vlad. "Yes, we do know he looks a lot like me." Vlad managed to continue the conversation whilst cleaning Mira's sticky face, and whilst most people probably wouldn't consider that something they wanted to do at their wedding, Vlad couldn't be happier with his family around him and the matching rings he and Ingrid had on. "A lot? How do you tell each other apart?" "Well one of us will turn to dust if they put this on" Vlad indicated his crown, and used to the joking way they confused people Adam continued with "and one of us doesn't want to see Ingrid naked." The five of them started chuckling, and Ivan looked rather traumatised and soon excused himself. "Well that's one way to get rid of the relatives, since we don't have in laws."

"Uh, Vlad?" Turning to Adam, Vlad raised an eyebrow in query. "Yeah?" "Look." Following Adam's pointing finger, Vlad caught sight of the security vampires surrounding the three... oh no, there was little Sophia Van Helsing, four slayers family. "Well, this should be a fun conversation." Handing Mira over to Ingrid, Vlad indicated for Adam and Wolfie to stay with them and headed over to the slayers. "I got it guys, coexistence remember?" "Of course Your Grandness." The security vampires went back to watching the doors and ensuring no huge fights broke out in the party, leaving Vlad with the Van Helsings. "Slayers at the Grand High Castle? Should I be worried?" "Wouldn't have brought my baby sister if there was some kind of problem." Roque magically appeared nearby, keeping a space around Vlad and the slayers so nobody could listen in to their conversation. Nodding in thanks to the vampire, Vlad fiddled with his ring and realised Jonno was eyeing the still-visible mark on his neck.

Realising he was going to have to explain himself, Vlad turned back to Roque. "Stay with Ingrid and Mira?" "Of course sir." Roque seemed to vanish and rematerialise next to his wife and daughter, and seemed to be explaining as Vlad led the foursome outside, enjoying the moonlit sky full of stars and the lack of tipsy vampires filling the room inside. "I'm not sure how to ask this. Did you just get married to Ingrid?" "Well technically, we got bloodbound but simply put, yes." Running through the time frame in his mind, Vlad knew what Jonno's answering question would be. "I thought it was all technicalities." "It started that way. I wasn't lying when we first met Adam." "So what changed?" Pulling the crown off, Vlad rubbed a hand through his hair before replacing it.

"I am not above hypnotising you to forget if you even think of saying anything to anyone else. You remember I said Ingrid got hurt before I brought your dad back?" Jonno nodded cautiously, waiting for Vlad to explain what that had to do with anything. "How long has it been since then?" "Little less than three years?" "How old would you say Mira was?" Jonno still looked confused as he said "two?" before his mind seemed to click into place, followed by his parents understanding seconds later. "Never ever tell her I said it, she hates anybody knowing and it has taken most of the last three years for her to get back to herself completely. I was the only person she felt safe with after that, and things just slowly became more. It wasn't intentional, but it's right. Adam even gave me his blessing before anything actually happened. Which was a surprise." Jonno looked back over to the doors, then back at Vlad. "So the kid isn't yours?" "Mira is my daughter, I couldn't love her more if she had my DNA. Dawn isn't yours, I still have it on good authority she has you wrapped around her tiny finger."

Mina and Eric still looked very lost, little Sophia looking the most at ease of all of them. "I am curious however, how the blood and garlic did you a) get here, and b) know about tonight?" Jonno dug in his jacket pocket, holding out a copy of the Transylvania Times that had the "Grand High Vampire/Chosen One getting bound" announcement splashed across the front. "Adam left it by mistake last week when he came to the guild. Complete with photograph of the invitations with your address on." Making a mental note to threaten Adam with garlic bread at some point for being daft enough to leave such a thing lying around, Vlad tucked it in his jackets inside pocket. Searching for something to say, Vlad nodded at the little girl. "I have to say, I think your sister got the looks out of the two of you." "Could say the same about you." Chuckling, Vlad couldn't argue with that. "Nice comeback. Is there anything else I can answer while we're alone, or would you like to come in and eat cake? It's blood free, vegetarianism is catching on slowly. And of course, no biting. Only my wife and daughter are in there, so that's where I should be."

They seemed to dither in whether or not to run away screaming, but Jonno eventually nodded and they followed him inside. Vlad made a beeline for his family, catching the wary looks the four heartbeats attracted and forcing himself not to flit just to get to them faster so the others could keep up. "Dad!" "Pumpkin!" Mira was so spoilt, Vlad literally never wanted to put her down and nor did anyone else. Except Adam and Wolfie when she tugged their ears in her affectionate yet painful way. Shifting her to sit in the crook of his elbow, Vlad continued chatting lightly with the slayers as he indicated the cake they could eat. Which naturally meant Mira wanted more cake too. "Sweet tooth?" "Not particularly, but ever since her first birthday when she had a cake, she's mad for the stuff. She likes parties because it doesn't involve her eating things like vegetables first. Mira pouted, but perked up when Vlad handed her some cake, having given up on trying to get her to eat neatly. "Does she get confused by you and Adam looking alike?" "No, she's known the difference since she was a baby. Clever critter."

She probably would have agreed, but she still knew never to talk with her mouth full and cake was more important than conversation. "She looks just like Ingrid." "Because she got the good genetics, clearly." Ingrid slotted neatly into Vlad's free arm, uncaring of who was watching as she kissed him. Mira giggled around her cake, her usual response to her parents kissing unless she decided they were doing it too much, in which case she would make "ewww" sounds. Unable to wipe the soft smile from his face, Vlad wondered how long before the humans couldn't handle more. "Actually, I did kind of want to talk to you about Dawn." Vlad nodded for him to continue, waiting. "What happens to her when it comes to her transformation and the whole choice thing?" "Well she comes here to transform. The rest is up to her. Why do you ask?" "Amy is still set against being turned at any point, but she's worried about Dawn opting to stay a vampire and not having any family since her father is dead. Dust. Whatever."

Shifting Mira over to Adam before she started getting ideas about playing with Vlad's crown again, he shrugged. "She's part of my clan" now he had secretly made that so at least "so if that's what she decided to do, she's always got the Grand High Vamp on her side." That was probably the answer Jonno was hoping for, as he looked relieved. Then another question occurred to him. "Is she going to be dangerous, like to a human sibling?" Vlad clicked the implication quickly, looking at Jonno knowingly. "Not at all, do you think we would have let Adam go back to the Giles if he was dangerous? You know all the precautions that don't involve pointy wood, and congratulations I think?" Jonno's dark skin flushed darker, much to his baby sisters amusement. "Look, we aren't going anywhere. Immortality and all. If you need advice we have the whole spectrum. Actually, we could do with a half fang. I should get back on those... No. No work tonight." Vlad stopped himself at Ingrid's glare, then realised the night was wearing thin.

Indicating the time to Roque, he got a nod and bid the slayers to hang back while he told the others to finally, blissfully go away - stood next to him they were perfectly safe, but Vlad wouldn't send them outside along with the vampires. That would be foolhardy to say the least. "I know we have a cease-fire, but I would say wait until daylight to head off just to be safe." Checking with Roque that he alright closing up after the band and caterers left, the vampires led the slayers into the actual castle. Ingrid disappeared almost instantly with Mira - the girl had chocolate, cake and strawberry jelly in her hair so she needed a bath desperately. Wolfie and Adam took themselves off to bed too, exhausted, leaving Vlad feeling slightly awkward with the Van Helsings. "Presuming this isn't a bizarre assassination attempt, feel free to go watch Harry Potter or Doctor Who for the half hour until sunrise. Adam brought his breather TV love with him."

Jonno cringed as he looked towards the stairs. "There isn't a force in the world that would take me anywhere near wherever you and Ingrid sleep. Tonight of all nights." Vlad cocked his head, confused. "Huh? Why tonight?" "Wedding night? Never mind, I don't want to have that conversation." Shaking his head in confusion, Vlad told Zoltan to be a tour guide so the Van Helsings could find their way out. "I'm off to put my daughter to bed, I presume I'll hear off you soon. Nice to see you." Normally he would be a more considerate host, but Vlad was drained by the excessive social workout tonight had been and just wanted to go and be with his wife and their daughter. Waiting for the foursome to settle sitting, Vlad made sure his crown was on before he got their attention and let the hypnosis out. It was subtle, shifting their memories to it being Vlad's 21st birthday, and forgetting what he had said about Ingrid and Mira, much easier to simply subsitute similar memories than wipe whole events clean out.

Leaving the subtle reminder for them to leave at sun up, Vlad clicked his fingers and waited. "Vlad, good to see you for your birthday! Best get to your coffin, it's almost sun up you walking corpse." "Cheers mate, lovely to see you and your family too." Zoltan nodded in understanding, especially when Vlad promised him a squeaky bat and something tasty to eat the next night. Flitting upstairs, Vlad felt his heart warm as he saw his wife tucking their daughter into bed. Joining her so he could bend and kiss his daughters forehead, he pulled Ingrid close and looked down at Mira. "I wiped the whole wedding thing from their memories, they think they visited for my birthday and they are leaving at dawn, Zoltan is making sure of it."

"Good. I'm not sure if they were more thinking of staking or sectioning us." "Our family know this is right, and that's all that matters. I'll be in in a minute, I'm just going to go slap Adam." Ingrid followed in confusion, watching as Vlad knocked on their brothers door and waited for him to open it and invite them in. "Can I ask how you thought it was a good idea to be carrying the paper with our binding announcement to the guild, let alone leaving it behind?" Adam's eyes widened as he quickly searched his travel backpack, realising Vlad was right. "Bats alive, I'm so sorry Vlad. How did they take it?" "Well we're alive, but I changed their memories. So if they ask, it was just my birthday and nothing else." Adam nodded, still apologising but Vlad waved it off. "Just... Don't do it again. Last thing we need is your mother seeing something like that." "Definitely. I won't be that zombie brained again, I swear."

Given the beautiful vampire subtly tugging on his hand, Vlad supposed he could leave it at that. He wasn't angry, he reassured Adam, just concerned he was growing careless and as a Dracula, that was never good. As an apology, Adam went to keep watch (secretly) on the slayers to make sure they left, and Vlad let Ingrid finally pull him back to their room. Placing his crown on the desk first, Vlad gripped her wrists gently when she went to undress. "Slow down. We have all of eternity together now." He had barely been able to take his eyes off her face all night, but her dress really was an absolute work of art - though not as much as Ingrid herself was. Blackest of all black, it shimmered like the starry sky and flowed effortlessly over every curve of her body, feeling soft under his fingers as he traced down her back and kissed her. "You are the most divine, perfect creation of this world and I am still in awe that you just stood up and agreed to stay with me forever."

Ingrid didn't answer, simply resumed kissing coherent thought from his mind as she pushed his jacket off and started unbuttoning his shirt. The desire that burned between them usually made things frantic, but if there was ever a time for them to take things slowly, it was today. Addicted to the mere sight of it, Vlad kissed the scars on her neck, the claim that gave her power to rival his and marked her skin as a display of commitment they could never quite take back. He understood the significant gesture when Ingrid had to turn away from him, the corset-like fastening of her dress on the back. Keeping his touch light, Vlad carefully removed then all and her dress fell away, though he was quick to drape it over the wardrobe door so it wouldn't get damaged. Pressing a kiss to the top of her spine, he turned her back around and cradled her still-flat stomach. The last fabric barriers between them didn't last long as the urge to feel their bare skin meeting took over, Ingrid's legs tight around his waist as they connected for the first time as bloodwife and bloodgroom. The encounter only got better when Ingrid was the one to say "I love you" first - Vlad knew she loved him, everything from the rings they now wore to her body against his said it, but he was more open and expressive with his feelings than she was. So hearing her say it first was a rare, beautiful occurrence. "I love you too, and I will never stop". She gripped tighter at his shoulders, the band of her ring a new, minute pressure on his skin and it was just another reminder that they had really done it, that she was really his for eternity.

-YD-

 **Wow, this chapter ended up huuuuuge compared to what I expected when I started typing it up. If I weren't so tired I could barely keep my eyes open, I think it may have ended up longer!**

 **Anyway, here is their bloodbinding. Next (and likely last) - Wolfie's maturity!**


	30. Wolfie

**And so we reach the last chapter! It's been quite an interesting few years in this story!**

 **Here we have (my take on) Wolfie reaching maturity. He's such an anomaly there isn't really much to go on so here we go, I'll give it the old college try!**

-YD-

"I think we are almost there Wolfie, your blood sparks to both silver and garlic like any werewolf or vampire now. How do you feel?" Stepping down from the height and weight checking spot, the teen shrugged. "Alright. My teeth hurt sometimes, but I'm not craving blood and I still shift into a dog. Though its more lycan than canine now I think." Wolfie was still growing, a towering six foot to Vlad's five foot nine, Ingrid's five foot seven and Adam's five foot six. His body was no longer chubby, but stocky and strong. His hair grew fast, but he still wasn't furry like his father had been. And the points of his canines were sharper but still not quite fangs. "Well, I don't think it will be long. Within two full moons at the longest, from what I can work out over the last few years." "Thanks Vlad, I know you've put a lot of work in to all of this." "You're family Wolfie, it's no trouble. Come on, I hear the baby crying."

A little over a year since his and Ingrid's bloodbinding (Vlad still smiled every time he looked at the ring on his finger), their baby son was now pushing six months old. Mira was still growing into a perfect miniature Ingrid, but Lucian Cezar Dracula was a pretty even mix of the two of them. Cezar had originally been a joke idea from Adam when they were talking baby names but it had stuck. "It means long haired, it would be like naming him after dad!" They had laughed and moved on, but Ingrid had brought it up when Lucian was born and it just seemed to fit. Lucian, or Luke as they tended to shorten it to, was not as temperamental as his big sister, quiet and calm but always had a smile or giggle for Mira. Given their own experiences growing up, Vlad had made every single effort to never let Mira feel sidelined, and there had never been any jealousy - Mira adored the little boy.

"Oh good, you're back. Your turn to try and quiet him down." Taking the baby from Ingrid, Vlad rocked the infant. "Come on little man, stop trying to drive your mama batty." Luke didn't want to quieten down, it was unusual for him to be so fussy when he was fed and changed. Giving up on alternate methods, Vlad started singing to him. The old Romanian lullaby worked a treat, the tiny face smoothing out into sleep. "There we go." Placing him down in the bassinet, Vlad moved on to Mira and picked the three year old up. "Hey monster, hows your night been?" "Boring, Adam won't let me win at anything!" "That's so you get better at them, then you can beat everyone." This appeased Mira, who happily settled on Vlad's lap when he sat next to Ingrid. Kissing his wife, Vlad smiled. "Hows the half-ling?" "Good. Not long to go I think before we can appease the council with proof he's not dangerous." "So glad Vaskow finally cracked and got himself dusted. Malachi was a bold move as his replacement though." "Yeah, well it means I have a Council I can trust at last. Though I'm still not sure we can trust Jacob with our little brother."

Ingrid chuckled - Adam dating Jacob was controversial to say the least, but it was another step in proving that Vlad's dimidius laws had merit. "He's a Dracula. He can look after himself." "True, but I'm always going to be a worrier, humour me." "Never, I'm always going to set you straight. Deal with it." Lacing their fingers together, Vlad admired the matching rings. "Stop looking so happy, you'll give vampires a bad name." "Never." As far as Vlad was concerned his life was perfect. He had the family he loved, and slowly his job had even grown on him, the ability to change things for the better and to have people listen was amazing. Vlad missed his father, but being a husband and father himself helped to push him to deal with the grief, and now he could fondly remember his father and not get saddened.

* * *

Sat outside, waiting for the moonrise with Wolfie perched in a cage construct - It was a precaution as the first full moon for a werewolf could be uncontrollable, and Wolfie had begged Vlad to find a way to stop him hurting anyone. The cage was argentalium, but that would make it a deterrent and no wolf would get within three feet of the bars no matter how crazy it got. This was the first of the two full moons Vlad had predicted was how long he thought they had, and it was hard to believe Wolfie wasn't yet ten years of age as the late teenage looking boy sat cross legged in the middle of the cage. "Anything?" "I feel a little shaky, but that could be the argentalium." Noting it down anyway, Vlad checked his watch. Fifteen minutes to go. "Keep talking to me, voice changes are important." Wolfie scrabbled for something to talk about, settling on admitting he was terrified and Vlad tried to reassure him.

The seconds ticked by, the moon rising into the sky and Vlad kept close eyes on his brother. Those eyes widened when Wolfie stood up, turning to face the moon and howling - an unmistakable wolflike sound. It was over in minutes, a sleek, huge black wolf replacing Wolfie's humanoid body and pawing at the floor. Flitting around the cage to get a good look at him, Vlad noted down the minor variations compared to the list of normal wolf physiology he had looked up. The most striking thing were his eyes, not amber or black like they should be, but Wolfie's usual bright blue orbs. His claws were smaller and neater than the usual jagged tools for eviscerating humans, almost elegant in their unique way. The fur was sleek, not scruffy or shaggy. Vlad may have had time for more, but then Wolfie was back, panting and human shaped once again. "Did you just change back voluntarily?" "I think so?"

That was definitely not on his list, so Vlad tentatively asked him to do it again. After five minutes of periodically shifting back and forth the teen looked exhausted, but thrilled. "I can change at will. Awesome!" "We still have to try this when it's not a full moon. Daylight and moonlight." "I know, but this is cool!" Asking Wolfie to change back one more time, Vlad called for Adam to come out. Wolves could recognise family familiarity in the scent, but Adam and Wolfie weren't actually related so he was the 'control' as it were. Vlad stepped in first, tentatively holding a hand out to the wolf and sighing in relief when all he got was a sniff and lick to the palm of his hand. Somewhat on tenterhooks, Adam stepped in next and Vlad moved back a little, so their scents wouldn't confuse him but so he could pull Adam out if anything looked amiss. Wolfie looked a little hesitant as he sniffed Adam, but then licked him across the face and made a sound Vlad could only call a wolf laughing.

"Can we let him out? Not near the kids yet, obviously. But just to see if it's the argentalium keeping him calm. Then it could be as simple as him wearing a mild argentalium collar when he wants to wolf out." Adam had a good point, so after Vlad took *more* notes, he nodded. Both vampires stepped out first, and Vlad took the camera from Adam to take a picture of the wolf. "Ok them Wolfie. Out you come. Then change back if you could." There was a moment of bated breath, the wolf whimpering as it passed through the cage door but then it was sniffing at the grass and looking around in amazement. Wolfie the human returned, laying on the grass and panting with exertion. "That's exhausting, but exhilarating. No more changing tonight. Please?" Vlad nodded - It certainly looked like Wolfie had control. "Alright. Go up to your room and take a nap, I'll wake you for the sunlight test."

Wolfie did so, with Vlad and Adam by his sides until he was safely behind a licked door before they totally relaxed. "Well?" Ingrid was nursing Lucian, but Adam just covered his eyes and walked over to hide his face behind his book - the usual response to this now. "It looks like he can shift at will, but I'll have to check him in sunlight and on a not full moon before I can say that for certain. He didn't attack either of us, just licked Adam's face and was pretty calm when we let him out. He's exhausted so I told him to go take a nap." "So uncle Wolfie is ok?" "So far so good tiny terror, yes." Mira went to Adam for the answer, knowing not to risk knocking the baby when he was being fed. Vlad took Luke to wind while Ingrid straightened her clothes, the routine down to instinctive now. "How are you going to test him in sunlight? You can hardly go outside after him if he wolfs out and runs off." "Windows. There's an old disused sun chamber in one of the towers, complete with a door I would struggle to break down. The window is UV filtered now, but it's still sunlight and not a full moon. If he can change back and forth then, and tomorrow night I'm going to call him in control. Then it's just a case of a trip to the Westenra blood mirror to see what that makes of him. I already asked Roque to go with us, don't worry."

"I am Ingrid Dracula, I do not worry." Smiling knowingly as he rocked Lucian back to sleep, Vlad knew better but didn't say so. Lucian had Ingrid's silver blue eyes just like Mira, not Vlad's darker ones, but the gurgling smile he showed was all Vlad. Vlad went to help put the kids down to bed before he roused Wolfie, offering the teen food and drink before flitting him up to the top of a tower. "Right. It's UV filtered so it won't kill you, I just want to see if you can change back and forth at will during the day. Then we'll test you again tonight and see what happens." Wolfie nodded, stepping behind the partitioning wall and grimacing as the filtered sunlight hit his skin. "Itchy but tolerable. Now for the fun part." The different time of day didn't slow Wolfie's shifting power any, back and forth half a dozen times before he was too tired to continue. "Come on, I'll drop you at your door so you can shower and sleep. You'll need a bigger doggy bed at this rate." Wolfie chuckled as Vlad flitted them back down, waiting for the sound of his bathroom water before he went round the corner to his room.

"Another run of success. It's still exhausting for him though." "Are we sure he's safe to be left alone while everyone's asleep?" It did need asking, there were children to consider. Vlad nodded, showering the smell of werewolf off his skin and joining Ingrid in their coffin. "Adam's currently hanging off Wolfie's ceiling to sleep, a guard bat for the guard dog." Satisfied their children were safe, Ingrid happily followed Vlad's mood as he kissed her, ghosting touches teasing over each other. He wanted her more every day, and eternity didn't seem long enough to enjoy it but Vlad was happy to try. Especially when it involved Ingrid whimpering desperately against his ear, clinging tight to him as he nipped at her neck and slid inside her, the feeling of connection between them only growing stronger since they had gotten bound.

Waking next to Ingrid never stopped being the best way to wake up, especially when the children weren't awake yet and Ingrid pulled him into the shower with her. "Good evening to you too" Ingrid simply smirked as they dressed, then headed to get the kids up for the night. Ingrid went to Lucian, as he always woke hungry, while Vlad got Mira washed and dressed and settled with Adam in the kitchen for breakfast. "I gotta get Wolfie out before the moonrise, I'll be back." Dropping a kiss to Ingrid, Vlad went in search of Wolfie. "Last time you have to get in the cage hopefully bro, in we get." Wolfie obediently went, waiting for the moon to hit him. It did, and nothing happened. "Can you still shift?" A wolf replaced the teen, then the teen replaced the wolf again. "Does it feel different to last night?" "Nope. The moon makes me kind of feel it, but I don't have to change if I don't want to. Which is pretty awesome."

"Yep. Well, I'm going to say stay there, I'm just going to go tell Ingrid we're heading out, then we're off to pick up Roque and see what the blood mirror makes of you." Wolfie nodded, stretching out and walking around while Vlad flitted back to the living room. "If it weren't Council tomorrow night, I would say we can leave it til then but as it is, I want to be able to take Wolfie with us and show that he's all done." Ingrid nodded, tilting her head up to let him kiss her and it still made his stomach flutter. "I love you. And you" he dropped a kiss to Lucian's head "and you too little monster" Mira giggled as he kissed her cheek. "Love you too dad, now go do the thing so you can come back." Letting his daughter squeeze him around the neck as a hug goodbye, Vlad went back down to Wolfie.

"Ready?" Wolfie stepped out of the cage, looking happy to be free of the argentalium at last. Vlad gripped his brother tightly and shifted, flapping over to the VHC. "Evening Hack, is Roqueloire about?" One of the messenger bats went to get the vampire from the library, and it wasn't long before they were on the way to Krone Westenra's castle, Roque there for security in case she got aggressive with Vlad - he didn't really want to attack a thousand year old grandmother. "Remember the plan?" "Yep." Roque knocked the huge door, the sound echoing through the night air as they waited. The servant who answered barely had time to blink before Wolfie darted in, shouting invitations to Vlad and Roque with a bark-like laugh - he didn't need inviting in. "Excuse me, who are you?" "Vladimir Dracula, Grand High Vampire." The servant looked terrified, especially when Roque glared down at him. "Apologies your Grandness. Your grandmother isn't home at the moment." "Not really bothered. My brother needs the Westenra blood mirror, once that's done with we can be on our way." Under the weight of Vlad's title, the servant quickly led them to the right place, flapping off fast when Roque shooed him away.

"What do I do?" "Just stand in front of it. Tell me if you see anything." The stocky teen stepped in front of the gilded mirror, black and purple frame as opposed to Dracula's black and red, no guarding gargoyles waiting. "Its like I can see me, but there's a shadow in the shape of the wolf around me." Noting it down, nothing else happened for another few moments. "We are going to have to leave you, if you have a vampiric reflection it won't come out in front of us. I'll be right outside Wolfie, promise." Roque had already checked the room for threats, so Vlad felt (relatively) comfortable about leaving Wolfie to face the mirror. "How long do we wait sir?" Vlad glared at Roque. "Sorry. How long do we wait Vladimir?" No matter how many times he asked, Roque would constantly call him Vladimir instead of Vlad, in spite of it making Vlad feel like a six year old caught playing with paint instead of chasing live creatures to scare them.

"It usually doesn't take long for the reflection to appear, it's how long he takes to merge and control." "Are you concerned he won't retain control?" "No, he's only half vampire. Adam had no trouble either. Maybe half-lings don't have such powerful dark sides." Roque nodded sagely, checking his watch and looking around in case an army suddenly tried to stake Vlad all at once. Setting his watch to beep twenty minutes before sunrise - that was how long it took to get home from where they were - Vlad settled in for the duration - they had a good six hours to go. Trusting Roque to watch his back, Vlad sat down to meditate, being gently prodded back to awareness three hours and fifty minutes later. "It is done." Standing back up, Vlad looked around. "Wolfie?" The teen opened his mouth, showing twin points on his top teeth. "Can you still shift?" He backed away from the narrow doorframe, flawlessly shifting to and from his wolf form.

"Half vampire, half werewolf. What do you think Roque?" "He can transform at will?" "Yep. The full moon changed him, but he changed himself back pretty fast. Then we tried during daytime, and again tonight as there was no full moon. He's more controlled than a full wolf, and his transformation is voluntary. Obviously we will have to wait until the next full moon to see if that always forces a change, but overall, I would say he's got the best of both his sides." "That is impressive. I would say do not put out too much information on any enhanced powers he has, lest it inspire another incident like the Lecushka brothers and we end up with an army of them." "Of course. I have no plans to change the laws regarding the creation of these hybrids, merely the ones to protect the children born to criminals. As Wolfie proves, he isn't dangerous." Wolfie yipped in his throat, still able to produce his dog-like sounds of happy, sad or scared. "Lets get out of here before Granny gets home. Drink this, then we shall see if you can fly."

Wolfie took the bottle of blood (human, until they could check he could hold down soya now he was changed) and drank deeply before belching loudly. "Charming as any other wolf." "His manners are usually impeccable, everyone gets a pass on their first post transformation drink." Roque chuckled, somehow able to pay attention to the conversation whilst keeping a wary eye on their surroundings. "What is the meaning of this?" "Oh. Hi Granny. Bye Granny!" Vlad grabbed Wolfie and flitted out, knowing his security guard wouldn't be far behind as they landed outside. "So. Can you bat up?" Wolfie scrunched his face up, the expression unchanged from when he was a child. The bat fell to the floor, which Vlad tried not to laugh at. He failed, but he tried. "Flap Wolfie!" Vlad lifted him up to give him some air, and this time he managed it. "Roque, can you stay behind him in case he drops?" "Of course si... Vladimir." Shifting himself, he shimmied a wing at Wolfie to say "follow me" before heading to the Grand High Castle - home.

Roque dropped outside the door, bowing to Vlad and bidding him good day. "See you at Council, thanks for coming with us tonight Roque!" "Anytime Your Grandness." Vlad caught the joking smirk as Roque flitted away, shaking his head in exasperation. "So, can you walk in?" Wolfie stepped through the door no problem, grinning. "Show off. Go get something to eat and drink, then you can come show everyone." Wolfie headed to the kitchen, and Vlad dashed up to the living room. Mira moved to let Vlad sit next to Ingrid, but climbed straight back into his lap. "Dads back! How's uncle Wolfie?" "Pretty good, I sent him to eat and drink first before he comes up. You have to promise not to so something silly like stick your finger in his mouth like you do to me, he's too new fang for that alright?" Mira nodded seriously, making a grabby-hands motion at her mother to let her hold Lucian. "Baby Luke is little, was I little?" "Babies generally are little, yes you were." Shifting to help Mira support his head, Vlad smiled over at his wife. "I can feel you being too happy from over here, stop it!"

"Adam, you are such a killjoy. I didn't dust Jacob for touching you, so stick a stake in it." Adam wisely stuck his head back in his book on half fangs. "Is your mum still forcefeeding George garlic bread before you go home?" "Yep. I told George if she wants to be turned, I will do it but not before she's at least eighteen. She's about to turn fifteen, that's a good amount of time for her to think it through properly. With her genius brain anyway. I think mum is just worried we will both become raging serial murderers, and after what you said about your ex's I don't know what to believe." Erin had been dark when she changed, Ryan more cold indifference but there were feelings buried in there before he was dusted. Then there was Will, who gained a new sense of mischief and dark humour but he still loved Ingrid when she bit him. "Yeah, plus there isn't much to go on for turning siblings rather than lovers. I cannot advise you there, but if she wants to be turned it can only help rather than risk her changing after." Adam hmm-ed as he kept reading, waiting to see Wolfie.

"Hey guys." "Uncle Wolfie!" Vlad had to quickly retrieve Lucian from Mira's arms so she could run over to her uncle, looking up at him and immediately demanding to know if he had fangs. "Yep, see" Wolfie showed her "and I even flew home as a bat. Plus I make a pretty cool looking wolf." "Let me see!" Wolfie looked over to Vlad for assent, and it was a testament to Vlad's surety that Wolfie was harmless when he nodded. "Come back over here Mira, he needs the space." Mira clambered back into the sofa, watching with wide eyes as Wolfie dropped to all fours and became "wolfy" as she called it the second she saw him. "Change back, you're too big for the living room now." Back on two legs, Wolfie grinned. "Yeah, I think I could only fit my head and front legs in my old dog bed now." "That's so cool!" Mira was enthralled, watching her uncle as though he might turn at any moment.

* * *

"Nervous?" "Nah, call it a family outing." They were all dressed and ready for the VHC, and as Mira had refused to be left behind they decided they may as well all go. Luckily, Adam had been happy to volunteer as practice for Ingrid to learn tandem transformation, Vlad would have but Adam wanted to know if it felt different as a vampire to when he was human. Apparently it did, but they weren't sure if that was because he knew how it felt to transform himself now or because vampire energy was simply more compatible. Holding Lucian tight to his chest, Vlad jumped up first, Adam staying to close the door behind them as the bats headed to Council. Hack looked most amused by the whole clan effectively stood in the building, barely recognising Wolfie. "My badness, he does look much different to when you brought him here before." "I know, I live with him Hack." Rolling his eyes and carrying his son through, Roque leant his staff against his seat after seeing Vlad had his hands full.

Mira happily sat on the table as though she were a report, and the rest of the Council milling in looked rather perplexed by the scene they found. "If I had known it was a party I would have brought a date!" "Jacob, just because you're dating my brother doesn't mean I won't have you executed for cheek." Jacob grinned, offering Adam a grin where he was stood holding Lucian next to Wolfie. "Why is your entire family here Your Grandness, if I may be so bold?" "Because I didn't want to leave Adam alone with two small children, and Wolfie was coming along tonight so we brought everyone. Mira, that is not a toy." His daughter found Vlad's staff intriguing, standing on the table trying to reach the skulls at the top. Pulling her to sit on his lap where she could do no... or at least less mischief, Vlad indicated the reports on the table. "The law amendment was pending Wolfie reaching maturity, and I can say with certainty he has, and still poses no threat."

The Council members speed-read through the report, then looked over to the teen. "And is he lycan or biter?" "Both. Wolfie?" His youngest brother stepped forward, revealing his fangs before moving to the bigger clear space opposite the table and shifting. "And back again." "He transforms at will?" "Yes. He can also turn into a bat, make fireballs, howl at the moon and chase his own tail. He's less of a threat than most full werewolves. So unless anyone sees an issue I don't, those amendments to the hybrid laws stay. Agreed?" The others agreed, making the temporary grace for any other hybrid child permanent. "I agree that one example doesn't make for certainty, but if it turns out there are more and they do pose a threat, we will come back and work it out." They went through a few more things (and Mira tried to draw bats on his report about bite licenses), and then Vlad happily called an end to the meeting. "You've made being on the Council almost boring. Everything is just working." "Yeah, but that's why we're looking into reviving the old battle laws. Anyone who thinks life is getting a little dull is welcome to challenge me and get turned to dust."

Bidding Roque a goodnight, the Dracula family headed back to their castle and celebrated Wolfie officially being a free hybrid. "Lets just hope mum doesn't have any more, she might decide to raise them to hide behind the law protecting the poor kid. The only reason we all turned out fine is the minimal influence of mum in our upbringing." Ingrid made a sound of agreement into her glass, skillfully holding Lucian tightly while draining a glass of Chateu Peasant '42. They were celebrating after all. "So, what will you do with your new found freedom Wolfie?" Adam quizzed from his spot at the table next to Mira, Vlad watching with an arm wrapped loosely around Ingrid's waist where they stood in the kitchen. "Well. I have to wait another year or so I think, but I was planning on asking your little sister out on a date. I'm not related to her remember?" Vlad wasn't sure Wolfie had ever moved so fast for anything other than food as Adam chased him, shouting "get back here furball" much to Mira's amusement. "Well, that should make for an interesting year." "Yeah, our five year contract will have ended by then. Still looking for a husband?" Ingrid placed her glass down elegantly, sat Lucian in his high chair, then calmly turned around and swatted the back of Vlad's head. "Idiot." Ducking down to kiss her, Vlad grinned and winked. "Yeah, but I'm your idiot now."

-YD-

 **And so we have reached the end! I shall now reward myself with cake for finally finishing this, update Chosen Two tomorrow and finally get started on the sequel to Adam's Story/Vl-Adam-Ir. Thanks to everyone who stuck with this to the end!**


End file.
